S. Korean FM close to being UN leader

"It is a great honor and a huge responsibility to be secretary general, and I wish Mr. Ban every success in that task," said Tharoor, a novelist and the U.N. undersecretary-general for public information.

"The United Nations and the world, has a stake in his success," Tharoor said.

U.S. Ambassador John Bolton expects Ban to concentrate on being the U.N.'s chief administrative office but the South Korean has already said he would appoint a deputy to do the day-to-day management and expected to travel frequently.

After the vote, Bolton said, "We are very pleased with the outcome here, very pleased."

He said a new candidate could still emerge but he did not think this would happen. "I don't think there's much doubt what the outcome is at this point," Bolton said.

Jayantha Dhanapala, 67, of Sri Lanka, a former U.N. undersecretary-general for disarmament, pulled out of the race on Friday after receiving only three positive votes in the third straw poll, held on Thursday.  

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