From Croatian Foreign Minister to UN Secretary General?
The government nominated today foreign minister Vesna Pusić for the position of the Secretary General of the United Nations. The decision was made during a closed session of the cabinet, reports Index.hr on September 3, 2015.
Pusić told reporters after the cabinet meeting that she hoped to have the support of president Kolinda Grabar Kitarović as well. She explained that the decision on the nomination is made by the government and that, while the president formally does not participate in that decision, it is important and useful to have her support.
“She has twice told me that she believes it would be very good for Croatia to have a candidate. I hope, on the basis of our conversations on this subject, that I will have the support of the president, especially during her stay at the opening of the General Assembly in New York late this and early next month, where she will have a chance to talk with a number of foreign dignitaries and presidents who will be present there.”
Pusić said that the United Nations have reached a consensus that on September 11 a resolution defining the procedure for the election of the next Secretary General will be adopted, and that the procedure will be different from what it was before. The chairman of the UN Security Council and the president of the UN General Assembly will send a joint letter which will invite member states to put forward their candidates. The final decision will be made about this time next year. The term of the current UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will expire in December 2016.
Pusić pointed out that an informal agreement has been reached that the new secretary general could for the first time come from the group of countries in Eastern Europe. The regional groups were defined after World War II and are somewhat archaic today, but so far the group has not had a secretary general. The procedure for the election is very complicated and the fact that someone is a candidate does not mean he or she will be elected. However, it gives an opportunity for the countries to achieve “greater visibility”.
“Despite all the formal and informal criteria, it is clear that each individual candidate, including myself, has just a small chance of being elected”, said Pusić, adding that it is more likely than not that she will not be elected.
President Kolinda Grabar Kitarović said on Thursday that the decision on the Croatian candidate for the Secretary General of the United Nations should have been left to the new government since the elections are too close.
“I will not go against the national candidate, but I think that the candidate must have broad support, almost at the level of national consensus. This decision is not good and I’m afraid that it will create dissension in the country”, said the president.
