Candidate for the headship of the UN, supported by Latin American states, without the approval of the government of her country
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva reiterated on Saturday his support for the candidacy of former Chilean head of state Michelle Bachelet for the position of UN Secretary General, despite the withdrawal of support from the current far-right government in Chile, reports AFP, taken over by Agerpres.
The former Chilean president (2006-2010 and 2014-2018) had been officially proposed in February by the government of leftist President Gabriel Boric (2022-2026), along with Mexico and Brazil, to succeed the Portuguese Antonio Guterres, whose mandate ends on December 31.
“Brazil will continue to support, as will Mexico, the candidacy of Michelle Bachelet for the post of UN Secretary General,” Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva wrote on the X platform.
“She possesses all the skills to become the first woman from Latin America to lead the organization, promoting peace, strengthening multilateralism and putting the issue of sustainable development back at the center of the international agenda,” added the Brazilian president.
On Wednesday, the president of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, reaffirmed her support for Michelle Bachelet.
“We believe that she is the ideal person to lead the United Nations and, as far as we are concerned, we will continue to support her,” Sheinbaum said in a press conference.
On Tuesday, the Chilean government officially withdrew its support for Bachelet. The new far-right president, Jose Antonio Kast, told the press, without further details, that supporting the former president's candidacy would be “a significant cost” for Chile.
