Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis held a phone call with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on the future of the United Nations and the already open battle over who will succeed Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, according to a briefing from the Greek government.
The two leaders discussed issues linked to Greece's position as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, including developments around the Organization's future and the candidacies for the next secretary-general, the Greek side said.
Timing of the call
The timing carries particular weight. The process to choose Guterres's successor is now in an advanced stage, with the Security Council's 15 members holding informal votes, known as "straw polls," to gauge which candidates have real momentum.
Greece's role on the Security Council
Greece is one of ten elected, non-permanent members of the Security Council for the 2025-2026 term, giving it a direct role in the process that will lead to the choice of the next secretary-general.
Greece is also set to take over the presidency of the Security Council in October 2026, precisely the period when consultations over the Guterres succession are expected to reach their peak. The presidency does not give Athens extra votes compared with other members, but it places Greece at the center of the Council's work and diplomatic contacts at a critical moment.
The next secretary-general is formally appointed by the General Assembly, but only after a recommendation from the Security Council. In practice, this means the five permanent members, the United States, China, Russia, France and Britain, along with the ten elected members including Greece, sit at the heart of the process.
Brazil's backing for Michelle Bachelet
The reference to "candidacies" is of particular interest given Brazil's position. Lula's government is one of the official backers of former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet's bid for the UN secretary-generalship.
Her candidacy was originally put forward jointly in February by Chile, Brazil and Mexico. Chile's new government later withdrew its own backing, but the candidacy remained active, still supported by Brazil and Mexico.
The Maximos Mansion, the Greek prime minister's office, has not said whether Lula specifically raised Bachelet's name with Mitsotakis. Even so, Brazil's stance makes the backdrop to the call notable.
In early September, Bachelet met Lula in Brazil, and according to Chilean media, the two agreed to keep her candidacy in place for now, pending new data from the Security Council's informal votes. A few days later, however, Bachelet struck a markedly pessimistic tone, saying publicly that she knows she will not become secretary-general, after reportedly unfavorable results in the first informal votes.
Eight candidates still in the running
The contest for the post remains open. Eight candidates took part in the most recent informal vote: Michelle Bachelet; International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Mariano Grossi; former Costa Rican Vice President Rebeca Grynspan; former UN General Assembly President Maria Fernanda Espinosa; Ivonne A-Baki of Ecuador; former General Assembly President Olara Otunnu; former Guyanese Foreign Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett; and former Senegalese President Macky Sall.
These votes are not a formal election. Each Security Council member can register, for every candidate, "encourage," "discourage" or "no opinion." The results are not officially recorded and the ballots are destroyed once the process is complete.
Later in the process, the votes of the five permanent members carry even greater weight, since any one of them can effectively block a candidate.
Guterres departs at the end of 2026
Guterres's second term ends on 31 December 2026, and his successor takes office on 1 January 2027.
The United Nations is meanwhile going through a period of intense strain, with wars under way, confrontation between major powers, financial pressure on the Organization and growing calls for reform of how it operates.
That, according to the Greek briefing, is why Mitsotakis and Lula did not limit their call to the individuals vying for the secretary-generalship but discussed the broader future of the Organization.
With Greece sitting on the Security Council until the end of the year and taking over its presidency in October, phone calls of this kind now carry greater diplomatic weight. As the informal votes continue, the contest to succeed Guterres is increasingly being shaped by conversations between the 15 capitals that hold a seat on the Security Council.
