Antonio Guterres re-elected as UN Secretary General for second five-year term

His second term will begin on January 1, 2022.

New Delhi: Antonio Guterres was re-elected as the United Nations Secretary General for a second five-year term on Friday (June 18). The term will begin on January 1, 2022.

He was appointed as the UN chief by the 193-member United Nations General Assembly. The 15-member Security Council earlier this month recommended the General Assembly re-appoint Guterres.

"I will give it my all to ensure the blossoming of trust between and among nations large and small, to build bridges, and to engage relentlessly in confidence building," Guterres told the General Assembly after taking the oath of office.

Guterres has been serving as the Secretary General since 2017. He was the ninth person to assume the position.

He also served as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees from 2005 to 2015.

Prior to that, Guterres was the prime minister of Portugal from 1995 to 2002. He was voted as the best prime minister of the previous 30 years by the Portuguese public in two separate polls conducted in 2012 and 2014.

During the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, appealed for global solidarity to overcome the crisis.

On Friday, he called for debt relief extension for middle-income countries in the wake of the global COVID-19 crisis.

He said that middle-income countries should have their debts suspended into 2022 to cope with the social and economic impact of the ongoing pandemic.

Following the deadly conflict between Israel and Palestine, Guterres called for full respect of the ceasefire.