Vietnam candidate withdraw UNESCO Director-General elections

Cairo – October 11: The president of UNESCO's Executive Board, Michael Worbs, announced on Wednesday the withdrawal of Vietnam candidate Ambassador Pham Sanh Chau before the third round of UNESCO Director-General position election starts, El Watan reported on Wednesday.

The third and the fourth rounds will largely determine the winner after the first two rounds could not resolve the competition; especially since none of the candidates received the absolute majority of votes necessary for the victory.

As Egypt still ranks third in the first and second rounds, Egypt's Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry is conducting consultations with foreign ministers of the countries at the Executive Board, in an attempt to collect more votes.

The Qatari candidate Hamad bin Abdul Aziz Al-Kawari received 19 votes in the first round and 20 votes in the second round, causing suspicions that the Qatari regime is buying supportive voices.

Audrey Azoulay from France holds 13 votes, Qian Tang from China has five votes, and Vera El Khoury Lacoeuilhe from Lebanon three votes.