Who will lead the United Nations after 2026—and how will the choice be made?
NYU CIC’s Thibault Camelli spoke with Paula Vilén of Yle, Finland’s national public broadcaster, about the selection of the next UN Secretary-General and what could shape the process over the coming months.
The conversation covered the expectation that the next Secretary-General will come from Latin America and the Caribbean, the growing push to appoint the first woman to the post, the role of the Security Council and its five permanent members, and whether geopolitical divisions could produce a deadlock or an unexpected candidate.
They also discussed a larger question: what qualities will the next Secretary-General need to lead the UN at a time of profound geopolitical division and mounting pressure on the multilateral system?
- Learn more: Selecting the Next United Nations Secretary-General: Power, Legitimacy, and the Design of the UN Highest Office (initially published with the German Review of the United Nations)