UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon on Monday announced his official bid for a second term as the UN chief, saying "if supported by the (UN) member states, I would be deeply honored to serve once more."


UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon speaks during a news conference at the headquarters in New York, the United States, June 6, 2011. (Xinhua/Yan Huan) 
The secretary-general made the announcement at a press conference here at the UN Headquarters in New York following his meeting with the Asian Group of nations at the United Nations.


Ban sent a letter to both the 192-member UN General Assembly and the president of the 15-nation UN Security Council, the UN ambassador of Gabon who holds the rotating Council presidency for June, formally asking for the support to his candidacy for a second five-year term as the UN secretary-general, diplomats said here.


Ban's current mandate ends on Dec. 31, and he has no declared rival for the post. The 66-year-old former South Korean foreign minister succeeded Kofi Annan in January 2007.


"This morning I sent a letter to the membership of the General Assembly and the Security Council offering humbly myself for consideration for a second term as the secretary-general of the Untied Nations," Ban told the press conference. "It has been an enormous privilege to lead this great organization."


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