Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman has been elected President of the UN General Assembly’s 81st session after defeating Andreas Kakouris of Cyprus in a closely contested vote, positioning himself to steer the world body through a pivotal year marked by intensifying global crises, UN reform efforts, and major leadership transitions.

In the secret ballot, Mr. Rahman secured 99 votes to Mr. Kakouris’s 91. A total of 190 ballots were cast, with no invalid votes or abstentions.

His presidency will coincide with one of the most consequential processes on the UN calendar: the selection of Secretary-General António Guterres’s successor, whose term ends on 31 December 2026.