German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock’s intention to run for the post of president of the UN General Assembly, while she is still in office, has met with a large, consistently negative response from the German public. Baerbock’s sudden declaration of interest and subsequent nomination by the German government forced the withdrawal of career diplomat Helga Schmid, who had already been nominated last year. What makes this even more remarkable is that Schmid had already undergone numerous interviews, and her withdrawal was due solely to Baerbock’s personal ambitions rather than any objective reason. Germany’s partners and other member states in the UN have also failed to understand the process. Former German Ambassador to the UN Christoph Heusgen quoted a comment to the effect that such a process was previously only considered possible in authoritarian states.

What is the office about? The president chairs the annual General Assembly, which begins in September. This task of chairing the meeting is shared between the president and her deputies, who have the same rights. It is therefore a rather formal office, which has often also been held as a secondary office, for example by a sitting foreign minister or a permanent representative to the UN. Nevertheless, it brings visibility in the UN system and requires stamina and diplomatic tact, especially when chairing meetings. As the nations rotate, the office is associated with particular national visibility. In 1980, for example, then German Ambassador to the UN Rudiger von........

© The Frontier Post (Editorial)