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Profile: Peter Thomson, president of 71st session of UN General Assembly

Xinhua, September 14, 2016 Adjust font size:

Peter Thomson of Fiji assumed presidency of the 71st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) here on Tuesday.

Thomson was elected president of the 71st UNGA session on June 13. At the time of his election, he served as Fiji's permanent representative to the UN, a post he held since February 2010. Concurrently, he served as Fiji's ambassador to Cuba.

Thomson replaced Mogens Lykketoft of Denmark to lead the plenary session of the 193 UN member states.

The one-year presidency of the UNGA rotates between geographic areas, with the 71st session being the turn of the Asian-Pacific region. Thomson beat his competitor Andreas Mavroyiannis of Cyprus in the election.

During his posting as Fiji's permanent representative, Thomson once chaired the UN's largest negotiating bloc, Group of 77 and China. In addition, he was a vice president of the UNGA from 2010 to 2011.

Thomson has also worked as an investment and management consultant on pacific island affairs for various government agencies and investment corporations.

Born in Suva, Fiji in 1948, Thomson has had a lifelong involvement in the field of development. He obtained a bachelor's degree in political studies at Auckland University and a postgraduate diploma in development studies at Cambridge University.

He is married and has a son, a daughter and three granddaughters. Endit