UNGA President-elect appoints Indian diplomat Nagaraj Naidu as Chef du Cabinet

Maldives Foreign Minister and President-elect of the 76th United Nations General Assembly Abdulla Shahid has appointed India's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador K Nagaraj Naidu, as his Chef du Cabinet.

Besides Ambassador Naidu, Shahid has appointed Maldives diplomat Thilmeeza Hussain as Special Envoy of the President of the General Assembly (PGA).

"Today, I have appointed Ambassador Thilmeeza Hussain as Special Envoy of the PGA, and Ambassador Nagaraj Naidu Kumar as my Chef du Cabinet. They will be instrumental in delivering my vision for the #PresidencyOfHope," Shahid tweeted.

On Monday, Maldives had won the election to the post of the President of the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (PGA), during the elections held at the UN headquarters in New York.

According to a statement from Maldives' foreign ministry, the country's Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid won the election with 143 votes, out of a total of 191 votes cast.

This is the first time Maldives will be occupying the office of the PGA. The Maldives had announced Shahid's candidature in December 2018 for the Asia-Pacific Group's turn for the session that would commence on September 14, when no other candidate was in the fray.

Shahid is eminently qualified to hold the office of PGA, with vast diplomatic experience and strong credentials, especially in the multilateral fora, said sources.

India announced its support for Shahid during the visit of Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla to the Maldives in November 2020. Even at that time, he was the only candidate in the fray, according to sources.

( With inputs from ANI )