Dr. Khalilur Rahman will take Annalena Baerbock’s seat at UNGA

Monowara Begum Moni

Last year German Media DW reported “Germany’s former foreign minister has been elected to become the new president of the United Nations General Assembly for one year in September. How did Annalena Baerbock became the President of the UN General Assembly. She was Germany’s foreign minister from 2021 to 2025.”

Replying to a question how she got the top UN job, she responded saying her appointment was “analogous to many predecessors who were also former foreign ministers (including Anthony Blinken USA) or former prime ministers.”

Just after one year Dr. Khalilur Rahman, present Foreign Minster wins the post. Bangladesh Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman was elected President of the UN General Assembly’s 81st session after

defeating Andreas Kakouris of Cyprus in a closely contested vote.

In the secret ballot, Mr. Rahman secured 99 votes to Mr. 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. Mr. Rahman will serve a one-year term starting on 8 September.

The election comes amid what the current General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock described as an exceptionally difficult period for multilateral diplomacy.

Mr. 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.

Despite the limited preparation period, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman took a firm and decisive position in support of Bangladesh’s candidacy At the time the BNP-led Government assumed office, less than three months remained before the election. By nominating Foreign Minister Dr. Khalilur Rahman, he expressed strong confidence that Bangladesh would emerge victorious through focused diplomatic engagement and strategic outreach to Member States.

A major milestone in the campaign came on 13 May 2026, when Bangladesh’s candidate Dr. Khalilur Rahman participated in the Interactive Dialogue organized by the current President of the General Assembly, Annalena Baerbock. During the two-and-a-half-hour session, Dr. Rahman presented his vision statement and outlined his priorities and work plan for leading the General Assembly. Thedialogue was widely praised within diplomatic circles.