From Afghanistan and Sudan to Ukraine and child rights, the 61st regular session maps the year’s global human-rights agenda
The United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) is convening its sixty-first regular session in Geneva from 23 February to 31 March 2026, bringing together ministers and senior officials during a high-level segment (23–25 February) and scheduling weeks of country debates, expert dialogues, and votes on mandates and resolutions. The programme points to an intense spring calendar, with major discussions expected on conflicts and crises—including Afghanistan, Sudan, the occupied Palestinian territory, Ukraine, Belarus, Iran and Syria—alongside thematic debates on issues such as disability rights, child rights, and the financing of sustainable development.
According to UN Human Rights (OHCHR), the session opens under the presidency of Ambassador Sidharto Reza Suryodipuro of Indonesia, with opening statements expected from UN Secretary-General António Guterres, UN General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk, and Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis. The Council meets at the Palais des Nations, a venue that often becomes a diplomatic pressure point when accountability mechanisms or country scrutiny are on the agenda.
A packed agenda: interactive dialogues, panels and country scrutiny
OHCHR says the Council plans 29 interactive dialogues with the High Commissioner, UN experts, Special Procedures mandate holders, investigative mechanisms and Special Representatives of the Secretary-General, alongside additional enhanced and high-level dialogues and multiple general debates. A global human-rights update by High Commissioner Türk is scheduled for 27 February, traditionally a moment when states and civil society test the Council’s willingness to confront urgent crises and emerging patterns of abuse.
Among the session’s thematic items are the Council’s annual high-level panel on human-rights mainstreaming, a high-level commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, and set-piece discussions on human rights and a culture of peace, as well as financing sustainable development in line with economic, social and cultural rights obligations. The programme also includes the annual interactive debate on the rights of persons with disabilities and the annual discussion on the rights of the child.
Country situations and accountability mechanisms
The Council is expected to examine a wide range of country situations under different agenda items, including, among others, Afghanistan, Sudan, South Sudan, Myanmar, Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras and Cyprus, as well as country files frequently tied to accountability or investigative mandates such as Ukraine, Belarus, Venezuela, Syria, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Nicaragua and Iran. The agenda also includes debates focused specifically on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and the Occupied Syrian Golan, as listed by OHCHR.
Early in the session, the schedule highlights enhanced dialogues on Afghanistan and Sudan, followed by discussions on the occupied Palestinian territory and on South Sudan, and an oral update on Rohingya Muslims and other minorities in Myanmar. These sessions often shape how quickly allegations and evidence presented by UN mechanisms translate into political consequences—ranging from renewed mandates to sharper language in resolutions.
Universal Periodic Review outcomes and new appointments
Beyond country debates, the Council will consider the final Universal Periodic Review (UPR) outcomes of 13 states, including Belarus, Liberia, Malawi, Mongolia, Panama, Maldives, Andorra, Bulgaria, Honduras, the Marshall Islands, Croatia, Jamaica and Libya, according to the OHCHR session outline. The UPR process is widely seen as the Council’s most universal review tool, even as critics argue its impact depends heavily on follow-up and political will at national level.
Towards the end of the session, the Council is expected to appoint 17 new mandate holders, including 11 Special Procedure positions and six expert mechanism members. These appointments can be pivotal: independent experts often become the public face of UN pressure on sensitive themes (from torture and housing to religion or belief) and on situations where domestic institutions are contested or constrained.
Why it matters for Europe
For European governments and EU institutions, the HRC calendar is not just a diplomatic fixture but a policy touchpoint. Many issues on the programme—conflict accountability, rule of law, migration pressures, digital harms, discrimination, and the protection of civic space—intersect with debates inside the EU about external action, sanctions, asylum, and the credibility of human-rights conditionality. As Geneva sessions unfold, European capitals typically face a dual test: how they vote and speak on crises abroad, and how they respond to scrutiny on rights issues at home.
Readers following the Council’s work can also track how UN debates translate into practical outcomes—renewed investigative mandates, sharper reporting, or new thematic standards—through The European Times’ ongoing coverage of the Human Rights Council.
Further details, including the annotated agenda and reports to be presented, are available via the OHCHR session briefing
