Next secretary general to be formally chosen Monday

dpa German Press Agency
Published: Tuesday October 3, 2006

New YorkThe UN Security Council will formally pick a successor for the UN's top job next Monday - choosing in all likelihood South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki Moon - the council's president said Tuesday. Ban has come out on top in four informal votes by the 15-nation council over who should succeed Secretary General Kofi Annan next year.

In the latest vote Monday, the career diplomat received 14 votes in favour and one abstention, prompting the second place finisher, Undersecretary General Shashi Tharoor of India, to say he was pulling out of the race.

Security Council president and Japanese Ambassador Kenzo Oshima said the council would take a "formal decision" Monday morning and could make its recommendation to the General Assembly on the same day.

The assembly must approve any choice, though this is widely considered a formality.

Annan will step down on December 31 after a 10-year term.

© 2006 dpa German Press Agency