IPU secretary-general candidate meets former UN chief Ban

Jun Sang-soo, left, seeking to lead the Inter-Parliamentary Union, meets former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon at Ban Ki-moon Foundation's office in Seoul's Jongno District, Wednesday. Courtesy of Jun Sang-soo

Jun Sang-soo, a former senior official of the National Assembly Secretariat, has met former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to seek support for his bid to lead the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), Jun said Thursday.

Jun, former deputy secretary general for legislative affairs at the Assembly, said he told Ban Wednesday that he has formally registered as a candidate for the top post at the IPU and that Ban expressed support for the bid.

The IPU is a Geneva-based organization that facilitates parliamentary diplomacy and seeks to promote democratic governance.

The 181-member organization will elect its new secretary general for a four-year term during its general assembly in Istanbul next April.

Jun, who currently serves as an adviser to Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance, entered public service in 1992. He has served in various roles at the National Assembly Secretariat, including as the head of the planning and coordination office, and the proceedings bureau. (Yonhap)