Turkey nominates OSCE Secretary General Sinirlioğlu for UN chief — Anadolu Agency

On October 31, Turkey officially nominated Secretary General of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Feridun Sinirlioğlu as a candidate for the post of UN Secretary-General. Anadolu Agency reported this, citing sources in Türkiye’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Letter to UN governing bodies

Türkiye’s Ambassador to the UN Ahmet Yıldız submitted to the presidents of the General Assembly and the Security Council a letter from President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Sinirlioğlu’s nomination. According to the agency, this was done in accordance with the UN Charter and a General Assembly resolution.

The nomination came amid a deadlock in the selection process. Another informal preliminary vote in the UN Security Council that day ended without a final result, sources in Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry said.

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Election procedure

To secure the necessary support in the Security Council, a candidate needs at least nine votes. Any of the five permanent members of the Security Council — the United States, China, France, Russia and the United Kingdom — can block a candidacy by exercising its veto power.

After agreement is reached in the Security Council, the candidate must be appointed by the UN General Assembly. The agency notes that this stage is usually considered a formality. The term of incumbent UN Secretary-General António Guterres expires on December 31.

Other candidates listed by the agency include Costa Rican diplomat Rebeca Grynspan, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi of Argentina, former Senegalese President Macky Sall, Guyana’s UN Ambassador Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, former President of the UN General Assembly María Fernanda Espinosa of Ecuador, former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, Ugandan politician and diplomat Olara Otunnu, and Ecuadorian diplomat Ivonne A-Baki.