Russia Says UN Secretary-General Candidate Rebeca Grynspan Understands Russian Position

MOSCOW, April 21. /TASS/. UN Secretary General candidate Rebeca Grynspan, the head of the UN Conference on Trade and Development on official leave, understands the Russian position, the Director of the Department of International Organizations of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Kirill Logvinov, told TASS. "A number of demands were put forward by the Russian side, all of which were outlined in the published piece [a column by Logvinov on the topic of the Secretary General's election]. They were substantiated by concrete examples related to the 'legacy' of the current Secretary General," Logvinov said in response to a question about the candidates' positions within the framework of consultations that have begun at the UN. "Rebeca Grynspan responded to the outlined demands reasonably and has overall made an impression of a thoughtful politician open to hearing arguments." "It was positively noted that the Costa Rican candidate has taken unpaid leave for the duration of her election campaign, as recommended by UN General Assembly Resolution 79/327 of September 5, 2025," the diplomat stressed. According to the senior diplomat, the Russian side "wholeheartedly shares Rebeca Grynspan's intention, should she be elected, to help restore constructive dialogue within the P5 [UN Security Council - TASS], which will undoubtedly give an important impetus to increasing trust in the Security Council and the world organization as a whole." "We agreed to continue contacts in Geneva, New York, and Costa Rica," Logvinov stated. On April 21, interactive dialogues will be held with former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet and Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi. On April 22, conversations will be held with Rebeca Grynspan, head of the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), who is currently on official leave, and former Senegalese President Macky Sall.