Harris also laid out her stall on key foreign policy issues. / Photo: Reuters

Kamala Harris has accepted the Democratic presidential nomination in Chicago before a rapturous crowd, pledging a "new way forward" if she beats Republican Donald Trump in November's election.

The 59-year-old sought to deliver a message of unity and opportunity to Americans on Thursday.

She lashed out at Trump, accusing him of trying to "take our country" backwards and of cosying up to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"On behalf of everyone whose story could only be written in the greatest nation on earth, I accept your nomination to be president of the United States of America," the vice president said.

"I will be a president who unites us around our highest aspirations," she vowed.

'President for all Americans'

Harris pledged to be a "president for all Americans" in a bid to reach out to undecided voters.

With the November election, Americans have a "fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism and divisive battles of the past, a chance to chart a new way forward," she promised.

"We know what a second Trump term would look like," she said, referring to a right-wing think tank's blueprint for a future Republican government. "It's all laid out in 'Project 2025,' written by his closest advisors, and its total is to pull our country back to the past."

Harris also laid out her stall on key foreign policy issues.

She called the scale of suffering of people in Gaza "heartbreaking" and vowed to get a ceasefire deal and "self-determination" for the Palestinian people.

Harris promised to "stand strong" with Ukraine as it fights Russia' and support NATO allies again all in contrast to Trump's stance on both issues.

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TRT Afrika and agencies