Palestine has decided to withdraw its nomination for the presidency of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly in the 2026–2027 term. As a result of Palestine’s withdrawal, Bangladesh is now set to compete with Cyprus for the position, as confirmed by a diplomatic source to UNB on Thursday. The Prime Minister, Tarique Rahman, has put forward Foreign Minister Dr. Khalilur Rahman as the nominee for this role.
Bangladesh officially entered the race before Palestine’s withdrawal. The election to determine the president of the 81st United Nations General Assembly is scheduled to take place on June 2 at the General Assembly Hall in the United Nations Headquarters, following the guidelines outlined in Rule 30 of the Rules of Procedure. As per the established regional rotation practice, the president of the 81st session of the General Assembly will be chosen from the Asia-Pacific Group.
The current president of the 80th session of the General Assembly, Annalena Baerbock, will conduct informal interactive discussions with the candidates in May 2026. Bangladesh’s last presidency of the General Assembly was in 1986–87, when Foreign Minister Humayun Rasheed Chowdhury held the position during the 41st General Assembly. Now, after forty years, Bangladesh aims to reclaim this prestigious role.
The 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly is scheduled to commence on September 8, 2026, with the high-level General Debate set to begin on September 22, 2026. Previously, the interim government had selected former Foreign Affairs Adviser Md. Touhid Hossain as the initial candidate for Bangladesh.