Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the UAE President, on Sunday evening, October 25, described as “unfair” sharp criticism by Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf of Lana Nusseibeh’s candidacy for UN secretary-general. Stressing that the United Nations was established to promote dialogue and resolve conflicts, not perpetuate hostilities and settle political scores, Gargash pointedly expressed hope that the posts reflected the views of the person managing Ghalibaf’s account rather than Ghalibaf himself.

Hours earlier, Ghalibaf said in an English-language post on X that the Emirati diplomat’s candidacy for the UN’s top post was an attempt to pave the diplomatic way for the “Greater Israel” project and “whitewash a systematic genocide”. In a sarcastic remark, he wrote: “Defending the Gaza catastrophe is her résumé; the fox is updating its LinkedIn profile to apply for the job of guarding the henhouse.”

The Iranian Parliament speaker also reposted an image of a February 12, 2024 AFP report published on the France 24 website. Nusseibeh, then the UAE’s permanent representative to the United Nations, defended her country’s decision to maintain diplomatic relations with Israel despite the Gaza war during the World Governments Summit in Dubai. She said the relationship had enabled the UAE to establish a field hospital in Gaza and a floating hospital at Egypt’s Al Arish port. While acknowledging that these measures were insufficient, she called for a humanitarian ceasefire and implementation of the two-state solution, stressing that this goal could be achieved not by engaging with like-minded parties, but by negotiating with opponents.

قالیباف

In response, Gargash wrote on X that fair debate and scrutiny of Nusseibeh’s views and qualifications for the world’s highest international post were legitimate and welcome. He added: “It is only natural that the nomination of a professional figure known for bridging divides and prioritising diplomacy would face opposition from some hardline voices.”

Ali Rashid Al Nuaimi, chairman of the Federal National Council’s Defence, Interior and Foreign Affairs Committee, also responded to Qalibaf’s remarks. According to The National, Al Nuaimi said Nusseibeh represented diplomacy and competence, accusing the Iranian parliament speaker of attempting to lecture the UAE despite Tehran’s record of “exporting instability.”

انور قرقاش

The war of words came four days after UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan formally nominated Lana Nusseibeh to succeed António Guterres in an October 21 letter to the presidents of the UN General Assembly and Security Council. Her candidacy subsequently received the backing of all six Gulf Cooperation Council member states and Cyprus.

Nusseibeh, who is of Palestinian descent through her father and currently serves as a UAE Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was her country’s first female permanent representative to the United Nations from 2013 to April 2024. During the UAE’s non-permanent membership of the Security Council in 2022 and 2023, she twice held the council’s rotating presidency. The UAE-sponsored Resolution 2720, aimed at accelerating humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza, was also adopted during that period. If selected, she would become the first woman and the second Arab to serve as UN secretary-general, after Boutros Boutros-Ghali.

The UAE candidate will take part in a question-and-answer session with UN member states on Tuesday, October 27, having entered the race at a late stage. Six rounds of informal voting have so far been held in the Security Council without producing a consensus. According to unofficial results, former Costa Rican vice-president Rebeca Grynspan has been the frontrunner. However, she faced opposition from two permanent Security Council members in the latest round.

Guterres’s term as secretary-general ends on December 31, 2026. His successor will be appointed by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council.