The United Arab Emirates has nominated Lana Zaki Nusseibeh for United Nations secretary-general. The formal letter was filed on 21 October 2026. No one has been chosen; the race continues.

Nusseibeh stepped down as state minister at the foreign ministry and as UAE envoy to the UN and the EU to run. From 2013 to 2024 she was the UAE’s permanent representative to the UN — the first woman in that post. She also served as a General Assembly vice-president and twice as Security Council president during the UAE’s 2022–2023 term.

If she won, she would be the first woman and the second Arab to hold the job. That is a possible outcome, not a result. The next secretary-general’s term would start in January 2027.

AFP, carried by Dawn: she has Gulf backing. Criticism focuses on the Abraham Accords — UAE normalisation with Israel in 2020 — which she has defended, and allegations that Abu Dhabi backed Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces. The UAE denies arming or financing the RSF. Allegation and denial, not a verdict.

Tradition says the post should rotate this time to a Latin American candidate. US ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz recently said the focus should be on the “best candidate”, not region or gender. That is an American statement, not a new Charter rule.

In the latest informal Security Council straw poll, AFP reported every one of the seven candidates drew at least two effective vetoes. No clear winner. Five permanent members can block a name.

The General Assembly has scheduled an interactive dialogue with Nusseibeh for 27 October. The Security Council recommends; the Assembly appoints. The nomination is a fact. The decision is not.

Image: UN General Assembly Hall exterior, New York, 2 January 2020 — DanielPenfield, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The headquarters, not a portrait.

Sources consulted: UAE diplomat vying for UN's top job — Dawn / AFP; UAE formally nominates Lana Nusseibeh for United Nations Secretary-General — WAM; Joint letter on the nomination of a candidate for Secretary-General, 21 October 2026 — UN PGA.