Longest speeches ever given at the United Nations General Assembly
Since its inception on January 10, 1946, the United Nations General Assembly has witnessed some of the longest speeches ever given by a single person.
According to Guinness World Records, the longest statement ever made at the UN was that of V.K. Krishna Menon, the former Minister of Defence of India, which lasted over 8 hours and was made during three meetings between January 24 and 25 in 1957.
On September 26, 1960, Castro Fidel, the then-president of Cuba, gave a 269-minute (4 hours, 29 minutes) speech at the UN. This is recorded as one of the longest speeches in UN history. The speech mainly criticised US imperialism and its interference in Latin American affairs.
Guinea's Sekou Touré in the same year, just a few weeks after Castro's outburst, on October 10, made headlines with a 144-minute-long (2 hours, 24 minutes) speech at the UN.
Following closely is the Soviet Union's Nikita Khrushchev, who delivered a 140-minute (2 hours, 20 minutes) speech about Congo's independence on September 23, 1960.
Dr. Soekarno of Indonesia also gave a memorable speech on September 30, 1960, which lasted 121 minutes (approximately 2 hours, 1 minute).
Former Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi rounds up the list with his 96-minute-long (1 hour, 36 minutes) speech at the UN in 2009. This event was chaotic as he tore the UN Charter.
