David Cameron supports Arab Spring democracies at UN
David Cameron urges UN to step up Syria efforts
(about 17 hours later)
David Cameron is expected to urge world leaders to do more to support emerging democracies of the Arab Spring, as he addresses the United Nations General Assembly for a second day in New York.
Prime Minister David Cameron has urged world leaders to do more to stop the "atrocities" of president Bashar Assad's regime in Syria.
In a keynote speech on Wednesday, the prime minister will say he is optimistic about the region's future.
In the keynote speech to the United Nations General Assembly, he cited a recent report documenting torture and murder of children by regime forces.
He will also offer Egypt financial support and help with security.
It was a "stain on those who have failed to stand up" to Syria, he said.
Unrest in the Middle East has toppled several dictators, including Egypt's Hosni Mubarak.
Mr Cameron also urged leaders to back the emerging democracies of the Arab Spring.
Later, Mr Cameron is also due to appear on one of the USA's most watched television shows, the Late Show with David Letterman.
Addressing Syria, Mr Cameron said: "The blood of these young children is a terrible stain on the reputation of this United Nations.
New task force
"And in particular, a stain on those who have failed to stand up to these atrocities and in some cases aided and abetted Assad's reign of terror.
During the assembly, Mr Cameron will meet President Mohammed Mursi of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood for the first time since Mr Mursi's election in June.
"If the United Nations Charter is to have any value in the 21st century, we must now join together to support a rapid political transition."
He is expected to offer Britain's advice on how to manage the area of the Sinai, which has seen recent clashes between security forces and militants.
Assets frozen
He also pledged a further £7.4m ($12m) in UK humanitarian aid for civilians caught up in the civil war in Syria.
And he offered Egypt financial support and help with security.
Later, Mr Cameron is due to appear on one of American's best-known television talk shows, the Late Show with David Letterman.
Before his address to the General Assembly, Mr Cameron held talks with Libyan President Mohamed Yousef el-Magariaf.
And he met Egypt's first democratically-elected leader, President Mohamed Mursi, of the Muslim Brotherhood, at New York's Waldorf Astoria.
He was expected to offer Britain's advice on how to manage the area of the Sinai, which has seen recent clashes between security forces and militants.
Chief of the Defence Staff Sir David Richards is due to take part in discussions about security in the Sinai when he visits Cairo later in the year.
Chief of the Defence Staff Sir David Richards is due to take part in discussions about security in the Sinai when he visits Cairo later in the year.
The prime minister will also promise to help repatriate around £100m of Egypt's assets - stolen by ousted president Mubarak and frozen in the UK during last year's upheavals - with a new taskforce supporting Arab Spring countries.
'Bang the drum'
The UK prime minister also promised to help repatriate about £100m of Egypt's assets - stolen by ousted president Mubarak and frozen in the UK during last year's upheavals - with a new task force supporting Arab Spring countries.
Under EU sanctions still in place, Britain cannot inform Cairo about exactly what assets are being held.
Under EU sanctions still in place, Britain cannot inform Cairo about exactly what assets are being held.
Mr Cameron will also address the continuing violence in Syria in his speech and will call for leaders to support humanitarian efforts in the country.
Mr Cameron, who was also scheduled to speak to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, also took part in talks with Afghan president Hamid Karzai and Pakistani president Asif Ali Zardari.
Later, he will meet Libyan president Mohamed Yousef el-Magariaf, and take part in discussions with Afghan president Hamid Karzai and Pakistani president Asif Ali Zardari.
The two leaders agreed to work together on a framework for co-operation following the withdrawal of international troops from Afghanistan in 2014.
Mr Cameron is finally scheduled to appear on the Late Show with David Letterman - a fixture on US screens for 30 years which attracts a daily audience of around three million.
Mr Cameron is expected to use his appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman to "bang the drum" for investment and tourism in Britain.
It will make him the first serving British prime minister to be interviewed on the programme and he is expected to use the appearance to "bang the drum" for investment and tourism in Britain - according to his aides.
He will be the first serving British prime minister to be interviewed on the late night talk show - a fixture on US screens for 30 years which attracts a daily audience of about three million.
'More prosperous world'
On Tuesday, the prime minister reaffirmed his commitment to increase Britain's aid spending and challenged world leaders to honour their promises on aid for developing countries.
Mr Cameron - who is co-chairing the UN meeting to plan for an international aid framework after 2015 - argued that aid should be more transparent and accountable.
He insisted it would be wrong to use the economic downturn as an excuse to go back on pledges to achieve the UN's eight Millennium Development Goals (MDG) - which include cutting child mortality and improving maternal health in the poorest nations.
At a post-meeting press conference, Mr Cameron dismissed concerns voiced by some fellow Conservatives that Britain could not afford its aid bill, due to the economic climate.
He said: "I think it is important that countries that make promises keep those promises.
"To those who are sceptical, I would say it is not only a moral obligation that the better-off countries have to tackle poverty in our world when we still have over a billion people living on less than a dollar a day, but it's also in our interests that we build a more prosperous world.
"If we don't, the problems of conflict, the problems of mass migration, the problems of uncontrollable climate change are problems that will come and visit us at home.
"So I think it's the right thing for us to do morally, and it's right to keep our promises, but it's also in our self-interest to do so."
