Nezavisimaya Gazeta: Russia Unlikely to Endorse Georgieva for UN Top Job

Two Bulgarians might turn out to be the main rivals for the United Nations Secretary General's seat that will be vacated by Ban Ki-moon late next year, Russian news outlet Nezavisimaya Gazeta has said.

That much of the UN's activity "depends on the personality of its leader, their authority [and] capacities to effectively use the UN's potential" is "obvious" at a time when the global body is facing a number of challenges as the world's unique bulwark of the international system but is still recognized as the only legitimate universal instrument in international relations.

An unusual number of female candidates are part of the list of contenders to take over as the next UN Secretary General in December 2016. These include Danish PM Helle Torning-Schmidt, Canada's Helen Clark, the administrator of the UN Development Program, Argentina's former head of state and Michelle Bachelet, but also Eastern European names such as Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite and Croatia's Foreign Minister Vesna Pusic, along with two Bulgarians, EU Commission Vice President Kristalina Georgieva and UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova.

Nezavisimaya Gazeta quotes [RU] Russia's envoy to the UN Vitaliy Churkin as saying it was "highly likely" that a Eastern European is elected to the office.

Bokova stands much chance compared to others, having gain substantial experience in work for an international ortanization after two terms at UNESCO. "That said, observers consider that her main opponent might turn out to be her compatriot Kristalina Georgieva - this is already a third unique feature of the forthcoming elections."

However, the piece points to the chilly welcome Georgieva finds in Moscow, which might be an obstacle given the need for all five permanent...