United Nations ( CNN ) -- On Tuesday , it was climate change . Wednesday , terrorists . And on Thursday , President Barack Obama confronted yet another emergency that threatens wide destruction overseas : the Ebola outbreak spreading in West Africa . Crisis management has become a hallmark of Obama 's second term , perhaps seen nowhere better than at the annual United Nations General Assembly , where the world 's leaders -- and their attendant calamities -- converge upon New York . Obama 's three main issues here -- climate change , ISIS and Ebola -- each has the potential to rapidly spiral out of control , officials suggest , with the effects of a warming planet already being registered and Americans overseas already being killed both by terrorists with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria and by the deadly virus spreading in Africa . Ebola patients left to lie on the ground . Hoping to demonstrate to fellow leaders his government 's handle on the problems , Obama said Wednesday that the U.S. `` will not be distracted or deterred from what must be done '' when it comes to helping solve the world 's problems . But throughout his 48 hours at the United Nations , Obama made clear he was n't going to take it all on himself . `` We can not do this alone , '' he said during remarks at a session on combating Ebola , which has struck three countries in West Africa and prompted a large-scale U.S. military effort to stop its spread . CDC : Ebola cases could reach at least 550,000 by January . `` We do n't have the capacity to do all of this by ourselves , '' he said , adding , `` I hope I 'm properly communicating the sense of urgency here . Do not stand by thinking that somehow because of what we 've done , that it 's taken care of . It 's not . '' That warning of the limits to U.S. power is broadly the same message Obama wanted to deliver on climate change and ISIS , which he focused on this week . Both threats , Obama said at various points , will require coalitions of governments to act rather than the U.S. alone . U.N. Security Council unanimously passes anti-terror resolution . `` Nobody gets a pass '' when it comes to reducing carbon emissions , Obama said , singling out China as a country that has a `` special responsibility '' to figure out ways of emitting fewer gases that scientists believe lead to global warming . As he directs the U.S. to rein in pollution from coal-powered plants , Obama hopes other nations that emit large amounts of carbon will follow along , though commitments from China , India and Russia have been modest . Without firm plans from those countries to reduce carbon use , climate experts say , there 's little hope of turning around warming trends that threaten the global population . Marchers sound urgent call for climate change ahead of U.N. assembly . So , too , will the threat from ISIS be contained only through coalition pressure , Obama and his aides maintained at the U.N. `` We can not do this for you '' was his message to newly elected Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi during a meeting Wednesday , saying that any resolution to Iraq 's problems could come only from a lasting , inclusive government . The coalition of Arab countries that joined in the U.S. air campaign over Syria -- a victory for Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry -- can help `` de-legitimize '' the ideology espoused by ISIS , U.S. officials say , making the group an essential part of Obama 's war plan . `` This is not America 's fight alone , '' he said Tuesday before leaving for the global gathering in New York . The long , slow fight against ISIS : Airstrikes , failures on the ground . Commitments have been forthcoming , including a unanimous vote at the Security Council for new standards in stemming the flow of foreign fighters . But even that measure will be hard to enforce , underscoring the difficultly in getting even like-minded nations moving in the same direction . `` Resolutions alone will not be enough , '' Obama said . `` Promises on paper can not keep us safe . `` The words spoken here today must be matched and translated into action , into deeds -- concrete action , within nations and between them , not just in the days ahead but for years to come . ''
Obama made clear at the U.N. that the U.S. is n't going to take the world 's problems alone . Obama 's main issues at U.N. -- ISIS , climate change , Ebola -- could spiral out of control . `` Resolutions alone will not be enough . The United States needs a strong and united international coalition with which it can confront these threats in concert. "