The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) backs Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister Surakiart Sathirathai in bid for the UN top post, the official Thai News Agency (TNA) reported on Tuesday, quoting Malaysian source.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar confirmed on Monday ASEAN's support for Surakiart, according to a report released to TNA by Malaysian national news agency BERNAMA.

Surakiart will contest for the UN Secretary-General post as incumbent Kofi Annan's term runs out at the end of this year. The 48-year-old Thai has campaigned for the UN top job since 2004, and his candidacy has been endorsed by the 10-member ASEAN.

With only five months to go before the election of the new UN Secretary-General, Surakiart is pushing to reaffirm the support from member countries through the 39th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting ( AMM), to be held in Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur this week, said the report.

Surakiart arrived in Kuala Lumpur on Monday at the invitation of the Malaysian foreign minister Syed Hamid Albar, who is also chairman of the ASEAN Standing Committee.

Surakiart said the fact that he was endorsed by ASEAN had made him very well received by all the countries he had visited over the past two years.

"I'm now the only candidate that has the back-up of a regional association, that is ASEAN, and ASEAN, as we know, has a lot of friends around the world, and I have been receiving encouragement from the people around the world whenever I travel," he was quoted by the BERNAMA report as saying.

Thai Foreign Minister Kantathi Suphamongkhon said more than 130 UN member countries had expressed their support for Surakiart so far.

Meanwhile, Thai newspapers The Nation and Bangkok Post quoted diplomatic sources from UN who in private told press that an informal straw poll taking place at UN Monday night showed that Surakiart ranked third in the three declared Asian candidates. Indian nominee Shashi Tharoor and South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki Moon haved received more votes while Sri Lankan Jayantha Dhanapala ranked fourth.

Source: Xinhua