Bangladesh's foreign minister elected President of the 81st session of UNGA

Bangladesh's Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman was on Tuesday elected as the President of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly in a closely-contested election. Rahman and Cyprus’ Special Envoy for Multilateralism Andreas Kakouris were vying to lead the 193-member General Assembly in its 81st session, which will commence in September. In the closely-contested elections, the Bangladeshi diplomat garnered 99 votes while Kakouris got 91 votes in his favour out of the 190 members present and voting. To be elected, the candidate required a simple majority of 96 votes. Rahman takes over the baton from current General Assembly President and former German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, only the fifth female president of the organisation in its 80-year history. The UNGA hall broke into applause as Baerbock, flanked by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, announced the results of the voting. Rahman appeared to raise his hands in prayer after the results were announced. "Having obtained the required majority,” Rahman “has been elected President of the General Assembly at its 81st session,” Baerbock said, extending congratulations to her successor.

Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman congratulated Khalilur Rahman on his election as the President of the 81st Session of the UNGA. "This achievement reflects Bangladesh's increasing contribution and credibility on the global stage. We believe he will proudly represent Bangladesh and forge connectivity, dialogue, and cooperation in addressing multilateral, shared challenges. We wish him every success in this new responsibility," the prime minister said in a post on X. In accordance with the established regional rotation, the President of the 81st session was to be elected from the Asia Pacific Group. The PGA election was held a day before the general assembly will elect five new non-permanent members of the 15-nation Security Council for the 2027-28 term. Rahman was sworn in as the Foreign Minister of Bangladesh in February. Previously, he was National Security Adviser and High Representative for the Rohingya Issue in the Interim Government of Bangladesh.

The election for President of the UNGA comes amid raging global conflicts, a deeply polarised UN Security Council failing to fulfil its mandate of maintaining international peace and security and heightened scrutiny over the relevance of the 80-year global organisation in the wake of increasing geopolitical challenges and financial constraints. The world body has also kick-started the process of electing its next Secretary General as the tenure of incumbent UN chief Guterres concludes at the end of this year.

In his vision statement, Rahman had outlined six priority areas for his presidency - ‘Silence the Guns, Amplify the Voices’, ‘No One Left Behind, No Country Left Out’, ‘Our Planet, Our Pact’, ‘Rights and Protection - Freedom from Fear and Want’, ‘Innovation with Inclusion’ and ‘We the Peoples - Reimagined.’ “As a candidate from the Global South, I carry the aspirations of developing countries, but as President, I will be everyone's President - acting without fear or favour and serving the interests of the entire membership,” he had said in his vision statement. Rahman added that the 81st Session of the UNGA will be “rich with milestone events that will test our collective resolve” — from addressing the existential threats of sea-level rise, to pandemic preparedness, to the right to development and nuclear disarmament. “Each is more than a date on a calendar. Each is an opportunity to demonstrate that multilateralism can deliver concrete results. If elected President of the General Assembly, I will dedicate myself to rebuilding trust, nurturing consensus, and opening space for good faith negotiations that will lead to outcomes for all that are owned by all.

“Working together, we can restore trust in and manage the much-needed transformation of the United Nations and prove, once again, that multilateralism is not only relevant, but indispensable to a future of peace, dignity, and prosperity for all,” he had said. Bangladeshi diplomat Humayun Rasheed Choudhury served as the President of the 41st session of the UN General Assembly in 1986.