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On 24 October, more than 200 iconic monuments, buildings, museums, bridges and other landmarks in more than 60 countries around the world will be lit up blue – the official color of the United Nations, as part of a global campaign to commemorate UN Day and the 70th anniversary of the United Nations, according to the press service of the UN Office in Armenia.

World famous landmarks from Australia’s Sydney Opera House to the Great Pyramids of Giza in Egypt, from the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro to the Empire State Building in New York, will be lit blue. Other participants include Russia’s Hermitage Museum, the ancient city of Petra in Jordan, the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy, Edinburgh Castle and Central Hall Westminster in the United Kingdom, Table Mountain in South Africa, Japan’s SkyTree Tower and the Alhambra in Spain, among many others.

Armenia is also joining this global campaign and The Opera House in Yerevan, St. Gregory Cathedral (Zvartnots) in Vagharshapat – 5-7th centuries, Tufenkian Old Dilijan Complex in Dilijan – 19-20th centuries and the Monument “Mother Armenia” in Gyumri will also be lit in blue on October 23 and October 24.

“I am grateful our Member States are showing such strong enthusiasm in marking 70 years of UN support for peace, development and human rights,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. “By turning the world UN Blue for a day, we can light the way to a better tomorrow.”

The global celebration will kick off in New Zealand and then Australia with the lighting of the Sydney Opera House at dusk, and from there a wave of UN Blue will move across countries and continents as monuments around the world take part in the international event.

United Nations Headquarters in New York will light up for two nights, beginning 23 October when the annual UN Day concert will be held, and concluding on 24 October.

This global event will be covered extensively on social media using the hashtag #UNBlue in addition to our year-long hashtag #UN70 and shared with the UN’s millions of followers on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Weibo, Flickr and more.