Ban leads UN top job race
2006-09-29 09:24
United Nations - South Korean foreign minister Ban Ki-Moon on Thursday emerged as the clear favourite to succeed Kofi Annan as UN secretary general, after winning his third informal straw poll in the security council.
The 62-year-old career diplomat finished ahead of India's Shashi Tharoor, a UN under secretary general for communications and public information, and Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga, the only woman in the seven-member field.
Tharoor had already finished second in the first two polls.
It was an honourable performance for Vike-Freiberga, who along with Afghanistan's former finance minister Ashraf Ghani did not take part in the two previous informal polls held in July and September 14.
Ban thus consolidated his front-runner status in the race to succeed Annan when the Ghanaian secretary general steps down at the end of December after 10 years in office.
'Still too early'
Returning to Seoul on Friday after attending the UN general assembly in New York, Ban expressed caution about his prospects of being elected as the next UN secretary general.
"It is still too early to jump to a conclusion," the top South Korean diplomat told reporters.
He received the outcome of the third straw poll upon his arrival at Incheon international airport, west of Seoul.
"I will wait with a humble heart for the results of the fourth straw poll and the official election," Ban said.
Ballots
As in the two previous rounds, the 15 council members, including the five veto-wielding permanent members - Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States - had the options in Thursday's round of casting "encouraging", "discouraging" and "no opinion" ballots.
China's UN ambassador Wang Guangya told reporters Ban received 13 encouraging, one negative and one "no opinion" votes, compared with eight positive, three negative and four "no opinion" for Tharoor and seven positive, six negative and two "no opinion" for Vike-Freiberga, diplomats said.