UNITED NATIONS — (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to announce about $230 million in new assistance for conflict-torn Sudan during his likely final trip to the United Nations while in office, U.S. officials said.
With the U.N. Security Council more divided than ever, Blinken is leading two meetings of the U.N.’s most powerful body on Thursday, capping his engagements with the world body after a tumultuous four years that saw war return to Europe and multiple crises in the Middle East.
But neither will focus on Russia’s war with Ukraine or the Mideast, where the U.S. has been frequently at odds with permanent members China and Russia and almost always in the minority when it comes to Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.
Instead, in an apparent bid to produce a modicum of consensus, Blinken is leading Security Council sessions on artificial intelligence and Sudan, where conflict has sparked a dire humanitarian crisis that aid agencies say …