Since its inception in 1945, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has served as the global stage where world leaders address international issues and project their political visions.
While most speeches are limited to 15 minutes, history shows that many leaders have dramatically exceeded this time.
Some have spoken for hours, turning the podium into a theater of ideology, ambition, and sometimes, sheer endurance.
Below are some of the longest and most memorable speeches ever delivered at the UN General Assembly, each revealing something unique about the speaker, the era, and the message they intended to send to the world.
Krishna Menon, Over 8 Hours
Though not delivered in the General Assembly but at the UN Security Council, Indian diplomat and defense minister V.K. Krishna Menon holds the unofficial record for the longest speech ever made at the United Nations in any capacity.
In January 1957, he spoke for over 8 hours, with a break due to physical exhaustion, in defense of India’s position on Kashmir.
His detailed, passionate, and extremely long speech was aimed at countering Pakistan’s claims and reaffirming Kashmir’s status as an integral part of India. The address became legendary, not just for its length but for the level of legal and historical detail it contained.
Menon reportedly collapsed during the speech and was taken to the hospital, only to return and continue speaking. While not a General Assembly speech, it remains a symbol of oratorical tenacity at the UN.
Fidel Castro, Over 4 Hours
The undisputed record for the longest speech in UNGA history belongs to Cuban leader Fidel Castro. On September 26, 1960, just one year after coming to power in the Cuban Revolution, Castro delivered a marathon speech that lasted 4 hours and 29 minutes.
His address was a fiery denunciation of U.S. foreign policy, capitalism, colonialism, and imperialism, delivered with the dramatic flair for which he was famous.
This speech came amid Cold War tensions and shortly after a major diplomatic incident in New York, where Castro had clashed with hotel management over accommodations for his delegation.
He moved his entire team to Harlem’s Hotel Theresa, where he then famously met with Malcolm X.
The speech at the UN was both a political attack and a performance of defiance, positioning Cuba as a global voice for revolution and resistance to Western domination.
Muammar Gaddafi, Over 1.5 Hours
Nearly half a century after Castro’s marathon, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi made his first and only appearance before the UN General Assembly in September 2009.
His speech, which stretched for about 1 hour and 36 minutes, broke the official time limit by nearly four times. Gaddafi’s address quickly became one of the most chaotic and controversial in UN history.
In it, Gaddafi tore up a copy of the UN Charter, criticized the Security Council as an elite body dominated by powerful nations, and demanded investigations into various international incidents, including the assassination of John F. Kennedy.
At times rambling, poetic, and conspiratorial, the speech veered from serious geopolitical grievances to bizarre claims and philosophical musings. It left diplomats bewildered and illustrated Gaddafi’s eccentric approach to global diplomacy.
Soekarno, 1.5 Hours
Indonesia’s first president, Soekarno, delivered a powerful and unusually long address to the UN General Assembly in 1960, around the same time as Fidel Castro.
His speech, titled To Build the World Anew, lasted approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes and reflected the revolutionary spirit of the time.
Soekarno criticized colonialism and called for a new global order based on equality and mutual respect among nations. He presented Indonesia as a leader in the Non-Aligned Movement and emphasized the importance of independence for newly decolonized countries.
The speech was eloquent and impassioned, delivered in a measured yet insistent tone. It placed Soekarno alongside other charismatic post-colonial leaders who sought to reshape global politics from the Global South.
