China did NOT vote against Shashi Tharoor in 2006 UN Secretary General ballots
Dr. Shashi Tharoor, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shashi_Tharoor, is currently Member of Parliament from Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, and was a minister of the previous Manmohan Singh Union (federal) govt. of India. Tharoor was Under Secretary General for the United Nations, and had run unsuccessfully for the post of Secretary General of the United Nations in 2006, coming 2nd to (losing to) Mr. Ban Ki Moon from South Korea. In an article in the South China Morning Post, CHINA DID NOT STAND IN THIS INDIAN’S WAY FOR TOP U.N. JOB, http://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/2039063/china-did-not-stand-indians-way-top-un-job, dated 22nd Oct. 2016, Shashi Tharoor himself writes that China did not veto his candidature in 2006. It was another country (permanent Security Council member) that vetoed his candidacy. Tharoor refers to a book by the then US ambassador to the UN, John Bolton, which gave details of the 2006 UN Secretary General election where Bolton mentions that the USA used the veto against Tharoor, which led to his defeat. ... Tharoor's article gives his views of why the USA blocked his candidacy and preferred Ban Ki Moon instead.
It is heartening to read in the article, how China was happy with Tharoor (who had been a career UN officer and so had interacted with top Chinese diplomats in the past) and played fair with him. They did not imply that they will back him all the way but they said they will not block him. The Chinese foreign minister, Li Zhaoxing, had told Tharoor after a meeting lasting over an hour, "Please convey to your government that China will not stand in your way."
China stuck to their word. China wanted an Asian UN Secretary General. In the initial ballot (voting round), China voted for all Asian candidates including Tharoor [apparently UN Secretary General voting involves a for, abstain or against voting for all candidates]. In subsequent ballots they abstained on Tharoor's candidacy but did not veto him (did not vote negatively against him).
It is heartening to read in the article, how China was happy with Tharoor (who had been a career UN officer and so had interacted with top Chinese diplomats in the past) and played fair with him. They did not imply that they will back him all the way but they said they will not block him. The Chinese foreign minister, Li Zhaoxing, had told Tharoor after a meeting lasting over an hour, "Please convey to your government that China will not stand in your way."
China stuck to their word. China wanted an Asian UN Secretary General. In the initial ballot (voting round), China voted for all Asian candidates including Tharoor [apparently UN Secretary General voting involves a for, abstain or against voting for all candidates]. In subsequent ballots they abstained on Tharoor's candidacy but did not veto him (did not vote negatively against him).
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