A German diplomat criticizes the nomination of his country’s foreign minister to head the UN General Assembly
Former German diplomat Christoph Heusgen strongly criticized the nomination of German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock to chair the UN General Assembly.
The former president of the Munich Security Conference told the German Tagesspiegel newspaper, “Its shameless to replace Germany’s best and most experienced female diplomats with an outdated model”.
According to reports, the German government intends to select Baerbock, who belongs to the Green Party, as its candidate for the presidency of the United Nations General Assembly for its 2025/2026 session.
According to information, the German Cabinet issued a written decision to this effect.
Prominent German diplomat Helga Schmidt was originally slated to be nominated for the position, but the decision has now been made to appoint a political figure.
Heusgen described Baerbock’s move to New York as a “sunset operation,” highlighting Schmidt’s accomplishments.
“Helga Schmidt was chief of staff to former German Foreign Minister, Joschka Fischer, secretary-general of the European External Action Service (EEAS), who negotiated the Iran nuclear deal, and later secretary-general of the OSCE, which she protected from disintegration”.
Referring to Baerbock’s political trajectory, the former diplomat asked, “Is this a feminist foreign policy?”
Baerbock is expected to be elected by the UN General Assembly in early June, and her one-year term is expected to begin in September, as according to internal UN agreements, Baerbock’s election is a formality.
