United Nations Security Council

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BELGRADE - Russian UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin issued a blistering criticism of the UK on Monday, suggesting that Britain has little business overseeing questions on Yemen at the Security Council, given that it is also one the largest suppliers of arms to the Gulf states bombing the country.

NEW YORK - Former Serbian FM Vuk Jeremic, Belgrade's candidate for the new UN secretary-general, finished second in Wednesday's sixth round of the informal secret ballot in the UN Security Council behind former Portuguese PM Antonio Guterres, who is now set to succeed South Korea's Ban Ki-moon.

UN's Security Council has supported unanimously the former PM of Portugal Antonio Guterres for the position UN Secretary General.

At the meeting behind closed doors, the 15-member council adopted a resolution nominating Guterres for the post before the General Assembly of the UN, announced diplomats present at the meeting.

The UN Security Council has reached an agreement and Antonio Guterres is to become the new UN Secretary General, announced the Russian Ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin.

Guterres is the absolute favourite for Secretary General of the UN after receiving 13 "support" votes, 2 countries voted "no opinion", i.e. no country imposed a veto.

A first vote on the UN Secretary General candidates where colour-coded ballots will be used to show preferences for contenders will be held by the United Nations Security Council on Wednesday.

Ambassadors on the 15-member UN Security Council will hold their sixth and last informal straw poll on Wednesday, with the five permanent members using coloured ballots to mark candidates they would like to block.

The United Nations General Assembly is to conduct an informal dialogue with European Commission Vice President Kristalina Georgieva on Monday, days after the latter was nominated by Bulgaria for the UN's top job.

An informal dialogue with Bulgaria's new candidate for the top UN post will take place at UN headquarters on Monday, Peter Thomson, president of the 71st session of the UN General Assembly, announced on September 29.

As of October 1, Russia will take over the UN Security Council Presidency.

This is the month when the process of selection of a new Secretary General of the UN may end.