Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman has been elected as the President of the UN General Assembly's 81st session. He defeated Andreas Kakouris of Cyprus in a closely contested vote on Tuesday, positioning himself to steer the world body through a pivotal year marked by intensifying global crises, UN reform efforts and major leadership transitions.
In a secret-ballot election, Rahman secured 99 votes to Kakouris's 91. A total of 190 ballots were cast, with no invalid votes or abstentions.
The presidency rotates among the UN's five regional groups, and the 81st session falls to the Asia-Pacific group. Rahman will serve a one-year term starting on September 8.
His presidency will coincide with one of the most consequential processes on the UN calendar: the selection of Secretary-General António Guterres's successor, whose term ends on December 31.
Rahman brings more than four decades of diplomatic and multilateral experience to the role. Bangladesh's Foreign Minister since February, he previously served as National Security Adviser and High Representative on the Rohingya Issue.
A career diplomat, he joined Bangladesh's foreign service in 1979. He also held senior UN positions in New York and Geneva.
Rahman said his presidency would focus on six broad priorities: peace and security; accelerating progress on the SDGs; climate action and environmental protection; human rights; governance of emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, and UN reform.
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