Turkey has nominated Feridun Sinirlioğlu as its candidate for UN Secretary-General.
The nomination was officially submitted on Friday by Turkey’s UN ambassador, Ahmet Yildiz, with the backing of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Sinirlioğlu, 70, currently serves as Secretary-General of the Vienna-based Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), a role he has held since late 2024. His mandate there runs until December 2027, but the UN post would begin on January 1, 2027.
Sinirlioğlu previously served as Turkey’s foreign minister for a brief period in 2015 and as its UN ambassador from 2016 to 2023. He had signaled his interest in the role during the UN General Assembly’s high-level meeting in New York last month. Yildiz told the state-run Anadolu news agency that Sinirlioğlu’s candidacy was supported due to his qualifications, international experience, and Erdoğan’s trust in him .
The UN Security Council, particularly its five permanent members with veto power—the US, Russia, China, Britain, and France—will decide on the next secretary-general. The 193-member General Assembly must then approve the choice. Sinirlioğlu enters a field of eight candidates, including Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan, who has led recent straw polls, and Argentina’s Rafael Grossi .
Greece, a non-permanent Security Council member, has already criticized the nomination. A government spokesman for Cyprus called it a “political oxymoron,” citing Turkey’s occupation of northern Cyprus and disregard for UN resolutions. “You cannot claim to lead the UN when you refuse to respect the principles on which it is founded,” the spokesman said .
Erdoğan has long advocated for UN Security Council reform, criticizing the dominance of its five permanent members. Sinirlioğlu is expected to align with this stance . The selection process remains deadlocked, with no candidate yet securing the necessary support.
