Bangladesh foreign minister elected UN General Assembly president, Guterres succession to dominate term
via The Reporter Ethiopia3 min read
Mohammed Ali Rahman, Bangladesh’s foreign minister, has been elected president of the United Nations General Assembly’s 81st session. Rahman secured 99 votes, defeating Greece’s candidate Harry Kakouris, who received 91 votes. His one-year term begins on September 8 and is expected to be significantly shaped by the search for a successor to Secretary-General António Guterres, whose second term concludes on December 31, 2026. The presidency rotates among the UN’s five regional groups, with the upcoming session allocated to the Asia-Pacific group. Rahman, a veteran diplomat with over four decades of experience, previously served as Bangladesh’s foreign minister since February, national security adviser, and high representative on Rohingya affairs, and held senior UN posts. He acknowledged that he assumes the role at a time when confidence in international institutions is challenged by multiple crises. Rahman outlined six priorities for his presidency: peace and security, accelerating progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals, climate action, human rights, governance of emerging technologies including artificial intelligence, and institutional reform at the United Nations. He pledged to promote preventive diplomacy and peacebuilding, drawing on Bangladesh’s role in UN peacekeeping. The overarching theme of his session will be “Restoring Trust, Managing Transformation: A United Nations that Delivers for All,” aiming to bridge divisions among member states and strengthen m
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This summary was AI-generated from a story originally published by The Reporter Ethiopia.
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