Turkey has officially nominated Feridun Sinirlioğlu for the position of UN Secretary-General. Turkey’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ahmet Yildiz, submitted the nomination of the former Foreign Minister and current Secretary General of the OSCE via a letter from President Erdogan. Yildiz confirmed this in statements to the Anadolu Agency.
“Our President, Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, taking into account Ambassador Sinirlioğlu’s necessary qualifications, abilities, and international experience, as well as the trust he places in him, deemed it appropriate to nominate him for the position of UN Secretary-General.”
Ahmet Yildiz – Turkey’s Permanent Representative to the UN
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In fact, as reported by the Turkish media, Yildiz stated that Erdogan made the decision to nominate Sinirlioğlu, since no mutually acceptable candidate for the position of Secretary-General has yet emerged, thereby facilitating the Organization’s work.
“Turkey respected the tradition —according to which the candidate in this election process should come from the Latin American and Caribbean region—and that is why it waited until now.”
Ahmet Yildiz – Permanent Representative of Turkey to the UN
Nicosia states that Turkey’s nomination of a candidate was expected, with the Government Spokesperson characterizing it as a profound institutional contradiction.
“It is, indeed, paradoxical for a country that for 52 years has continued to illegally occupy 37% of the territory of the Republic of Cyprus, a member state of the United Nations, to continue to illegally occupy 37% of the territory of the Republic of Cyprus, while claiming leadership of the very Organization that was founded to defend international peace, sovereignty, and the territorial integrity of states.”
Grispán Takes the Lead
Costa Rican Rebecca Grispan strengthened her lead during the Security Council’s seventh informal ballot. She received eleven votes of encouragement and four of discouragement. Rafael Grossi followed with nine votes of encouragement, four against, and two “abstentions,” followed by Lana Nusseibeh, in her first participation in the process, who received seven votes in favor, six against, and two “abstentions.”
The Security Council’s goal is to submit its recommendation to the General Assembly in a timely manner, where the appointment of the United Nations Secretary-General takes place. The recommendation requires at least nine affirmative votes and no vetoes from the five permanent members: the U.S., Russia, China, France, and the United Kingdom.
Watch the report by Nasia Ioannou:
