Portuguese diplomat Antonio Guterres has been elected as the new Secretary General of the United Nations after being ushered in by proclamation.
Mr Guterres, a former Portuguese Prime Minister and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, was chosen from a list of ten candidates.
He would replace outgoing head Ban Ki-moon, who has exhausted his two five year terms, and takes office from January 1, 2017.
Guterres told the BBC that he would make solving the Syrian refugee crisis his top priority in office.
“I believe it is the international community’s first priority is to be able to end this conflict and use this momentum created by it to try to address all the other conflicts that are interlinked,” he said.
“I hope people will understand that it’s better to put aside different opinions, different interests and to understand that there is a common, vital interest to put an end to these conflicts, because that is absolutely central if you want to live in a world where a minimum of securities are established, where people can live a normal life,”