"If he (Ban) is available and running we will endorse him for a second term," the diplomat said, adding he did not want to comment and dismissed as speculative that former UN Under Secretary General and sitting Lok Sabha member Shashi Tharoor might contest for the election.
The United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, has called for de-escalation between India and Pakistan, expressing deep concern over rising tensions following a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir. Guterres reiterated his condemnation of the attack and urged both sides to avoid a confrontation, which he described as catastrophic. The Secretary-General has also offered his good offices to support de-escalation efforts. The President of the UN General Assembly, Philemon Yang, has also expressed concern over the escalating violence and called for a resolution through diplomatic means. Meanwhile, Pakistan has denied any involvement in the attack and reiterated its commitment to fighting terrorism.
Amid rising tensions between India and Pakistan, the US has called on both countries "not to escalate" the conflict. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to speak with the foreign ministers of Pakistan and India as early as today or tomorrow. The US State Department said Washington is reaching out to both India and Pakistan "regarding the Kashmir situation" and telling them "not to escalate the situation."
Jaishankar, who met Guterres at the UN headquarters in New York, also discussed other issues, including India's presidency of the G20 and the Ukraine conflict, with the UN chief.
UN chief Antonio Guterres is closely following the situation in New Delhi and stresses that demonstrators should be allowed to protest peacefully and security forces should show restraint, his spokesperson said.
The UNSC meeting also focussed on the 15th report of the Secretary-General on the threat posed by ISIL (Da'esh) to international peace and security and the range of United Nations efforts in support of member states in countering the threat.
Antonio Guterres, who had served as UN High Commissioner for Refugees for 10 years, has emerged as the front-runner in the first two rounds of informal voting.
Russia's envoy to the UN and President of the Council for October Vitaly Churkin announced that after the sixth straw poll, Guterres has emerged as the "clear favourite" even as hopes for a woman to succeed Ban Ki-moon as the world's top diplomat suffered a major setback.
'Kofi Annan will be remembered more for his Nobel Prize and related glory rather than Rwanda and Volcker,' notes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan with whom he worked in the UN.
The report documents allegations of reprisals and intimidation in 38 countries, some of which are members of the Human Rights Council.
The US president was received by Lee at the presidential palace Istana, where they were expected to discuss everything from the summit preparations to America's tariff threats.
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