Russia and the United States are both angry that Annalena Baerbock, the former German foreign minister who now presides over the UN General Assembly, is pressing for the assembly to have a larger part in choosing the next secretary-general. Der Spiegel reports the Russian ambassador to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, saying in New York that Russia was concerned about the role the assembly's president was trying to assign herself. That put him alongside a criticism from the United States the day before, in which Baerbock was accused of hypocrisy, among other things.
António Guterres leaves office at the end of the year. Baerbock has said repeatedly that she is pushing for a selection process that is transparent, inclusive, structured, timely and credible. As things stand, the decisive recommendation belongs to the Security Council, which settles on a candidate in closed votes; the General Assembly of 193 member states then makes the appointment. There are currently eight applicants for the post.
Against that background Baerbock has done what recent assembly presidents have done — organised public hearings of the candidates and written to the Security Council about the process. At the hearing, the audience then voted on the candidates, which diplomats say was a first. She also asked the Security Council not to put a candidate forward before a certain point.
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확인: Der Spiegel