Frontrunner for UN Secretary-General position criticizes the organization's current approach

Costa Rican economist supports job cuts at the UN and reducing task duplication

Security Council to hold a straw poll on the next Secretary-General on Friday

Rebecca Grynspan, the frontrunner for the position of UN Secretary-General, told Reuters on Thursday that the international organization has become overly risk-averse, and that its next leader must be prepared to bear the cost of diplomatic failure and try again.

She made these remarks ahead of another Security Council straw poll tomorrow, Friday, to gauge support for the new Secretary-General who will succeed António Guterres, whose second five-year term ends on December 31.

Grynspan said the UN must cut jobs, reduce bureaucracy, and end the duplication of tasks between agencies, adding that cost-cutting alone will not revitalize an institution suffering from shrinking resources and declining political influence.

"I think the UN has become overly risk-averse... You are the ones who have to bear the cost of rejection, the cost of failure, and the cost of trying again. That is the job of the UN," she said.

* Initiative organization

Grynspan (70), a former Vice President of Costa Rica, called for the UN to be more proactive after the role of the 193-member organization was largely sidelined in the ongoing wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, while facing pressure from the administration of US President Donald Trump to cut costs.

"Cutting costs is not enough. Yes, you can cut costs and make everything worse. If you don't reform, you will make everything worse than it was before. That is why I talk about refocusing," the economist told Reuters.

Referring to her tenure as Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Grynspan said she cut 20 percent of jobs while increasing the focus on core tasks.

US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz criticized what he called bureaucratic "bloat" and task duplication at the UN, and called for a clearer focus on peacekeeping.

Grynspan said she shares Waltz's concerns, stating, "It is necessary to carry out some mergers and rethink how to implement the mandate in many areas where the UN has expanded."

She added that she would appoint someone within her office to "enforce the discipline necessary to implement the mandate."

Grynspan spoke about her role in the 2022 Black Sea Grain Initiative negotiations as a model for dealing with conflicts involving a permanent member of the Security Council. Russia withdrew from the agreement in 2023, complaining that key parts of it were never implemented.

"We did not resort to the media... it was quiet diplomacy that achieved results... It is not about the ability to achieve perfect harmony in international affairs... it is about doing a good job," she said.

Grynspan said the UN already possesses the expertise, information, and field presence to play a larger diplomatic role, but it needs leadership capable of mobilizing those resources.

"Peacemaking must be at the heart of the UN's efforts," she added, noting the escalation of bloody conflicts between states, and called for an increased focus on mediation and conflict prevention efforts.

She also called for more flexibility in peacekeeping operations, saying the Secretary-General must work closely with the five permanent members of the Security Council to find alternative models when traditional peacekeeping operations are not viable.

* "The game is not over yet"

Grynspan, who would become the first female Secretary-General in UN history if she wins, has led four out of five informal straw polls and received nine favorable votes last week, according to diplomats familiar with the matter.

Securing the recommendation requires at least nine favorable votes out of 15 countries, and no "opposing" votes from the five permanent members: the United States, China, Russia, France, and Britain. Tomorrow's Friday poll will use color-coded ballots for the first time, revealing whether a country with veto power opposes a candidate.

Grynspan said she is the only candidate who has consistently received nine votes in her favor, but she "would not be surprised" if she received an opposing vote from one of the veto-wielding nations. She added that such opposition has been overcome in previous elections.

UN diplomats say several prominent figures, including former and current foreign ministers and heads of state, are seriously considering entering the race.

Grynspan expects new names to enter the race after Friday's vote, saying, "The game is not over yet... We will have to keep working."