1981 United Nations Secretary-General selection again run for a third term. China became the enforcer of regional rotation, announcing which regional group it would support in each selection. Contrary to expectations, Europe was not excluded from the rotation. After 35 years of U.N. Secretaries-General from the Third World, the 2016 selection was won by António Guterres of Portugal, who became the first European Secretary-General since Kurt Waldheim. As Javier Pérez de Cuéllar's first term came to a close in 1986, the United Nations faced mounting financial difficulties. After the United States Congress cut the U.S. contribution to the U.N., Pérez said that he would only
1953 United Nations Secretary-General selection the task imposed on me." On 7 April 1953, the General Assembly voted 57-1-1 to appoint Dag Hammarskjöld Secretary-General of the United Nations for a 5-year term. The negative vote was from Nationalist China, and the abstention may have been a Latin American country. The Swedish ambassador speculated that tensions with Juan Perón caused Argentina to abstain, but others felt that Uruguay abstained to protest the manner in which Hammarskjöld had been rushed through the Security Council without consulting the non-permanent members. U.S. ambassador Lodge attempted to mollify the Latin American countries by explaining that the nomination had happened so