South Korea's FM on course to replace Annan

South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moon (L) is congratulated by his office staff at the Foreign Ministry in Seoul yesterday. South Korea was jubilant after its Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moon took a decisive step towards becoming the next United Nations secretary general. PHOTO: AFP

Ban, 62, will probably be named formally on October 9 in an official vote by the 15-nation UN Security Council after winning four straw polls, including a crucial one on Monday.

After the council's recommendation, the 192-member UN General Assembly is expected to endorse Ban as the eighth secretary-general of the United Nations since 1946 to replace Kofi Annan of Ghana, who ends 10 years in office on December 31.

"It is quite clear from today's vote that Minister Ban Ki Moon is the candidate the Security Council will recommend" to the General Assembly, China's UN ambassador, Wang Guangya, told reporters.