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Grossi, Orban candidacies for UN secretary-general post good for Russia — Likhachev

US media earlier reported that Washington, Moscow and Beijing are considering former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban as a possible joint candidate to replace UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres

MOSCOW, October 28. /TASS/. The UN secretary-general candidacies of former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi are highly appealing to Russia, Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev said.

"Both options, it seems to me, will be very attractive for Russia," Likhachev said in a comment to Life journalist Alexander Yunashev.

Yunashev recalled Likhachev's promise to drink Argentinian wine with Grossi if he won, and asked, referring to Orban: "Is the plum wine good too?" The Rosatom head replied with a laugh: "Yes, we have that experience."

Earlier, US media reported that Washington, Moscow and Beijing are considering Orban as a possible joint candidate to replace UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, whose mandate expires on December 31. The countries have not yet officially confirmed the initiative. Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the presidents of Russia and the United States did not discuss Orban’s nomination during their last phone call.