Turkey’s candidate for UN secretary-general, Feridun Sinirlioglu, received three encourage votes and eight discourage votes, with four members expressing no opinion, in the Security Council’s eighth informal straw poll, according to cnn.gr.
Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan received the most support, with 12 encourage and three discourage votes. Argentina’s Rafael Grossi had nine encourage, four discourage and two no opinion, followed by Carolyn Rodrigues Birkett with eight, five and two, and Lana Nusseibeh with seven, six and two.
Sinirlioglu, a former Turkish foreign minister and the current secretary general of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), entered the race on 1 November, so this was the first poll to include him. None of the five permanent members, the United States, Russia, China, France and the United Kingdom, reportedly backed him.
The process is not over. A straw poll does not formally eliminate a candidate, and the Security Council does not officially publish the results. A new secretary-general needs at least nine votes in favour and no negative vote from any of the five permanent members, which hold a veto.
Greece and Cyprus
Greece is a non-permanent member of the Security Council and is taking part in the process. Greek diplomats saw the possible election of a former Turkish foreign minister as UN chief as significant for Greece’s positions and for the Cyprus problem.
Athens reportedly activated its contacts in the Security Council, placing particular weight on France and the positions of the permanent members. It also coordinated with Nicosia, as the Cyprus dimension had been central from the start because of Turkey’s occupation of the north of the island. At issue was the prospect of a Turkish diplomat with direct knowledge of and involvement in Turkey’s positions on Cyprus and the eastern Mediterranean leading the UN.
Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis had publicly set universal respect for international law as the main criterion for the next secretary-general, noting that Turkey does not accept UN resolutions, most notably on Cyprus. Athens had made clear it could not support such a candidacy.
(information from protothema.gr, cnn.gr)
