UN: The leading candidate to succeed Kofi Annan as secretary general of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon, South Korea's minister of foreign affairs and trade, has at least one potential advantage over his rivals.
Mr Ban is the architect of South Korea's trade and aid policies, so he is responsible for signing trade deals and doling out foreign assistance that sometimes benefits countries with a hand in deciding his fate.
Rivals for the job of the world's top diplomat have privately grumbled that South Korea, which has the world's 11th largest economy, has wielded its economic might to generate support for his candidacy. They cited South Korean president Roh Moo-Hyun's trade mission earlier this month to Greece, which holds the security council's presidency. The visit, the first by a South Korean leader to Greece since 1961, concluded with the signing of trade and tourism agreements.
Mr Ban also was the first senior South Korean minister to visit Congo, another security council member, since that country's independence in 1960.
Mr Ban said the insinuations were "groundless" and that he had arranged the trade mission to Greece long ago to balance a similar mission last year to Turkey, Greece's regional rival. He said the Congo trip was part of a process of reaching out to countries that Korea had neglected over the years. Like most of the candidates, he has tried to visit all the security council nations.
"As front runner, I know that I can become a target of this very scrutinising process," he said. "I am a man of integrity."
The political sniping that has accompanied Mr Ban's popularity in the race marks a departure from previous contests for the job, which were traditionally conducted behind closed doors.
With Mr Annan's term expiring at the year's end, a field of seven candidates has mounted a global political campaign featuring televised debates, newspaper opinion pieces and appearances at world and regional summits.
To win, a candidate requires the support of at least nine of the 15 members of the security council, including its five permanent members.
Mr Ban maintained his lead in the race on Thursday when the council took its third straw poll, with 13 council members encouraging his candidacy, one discouraging it and one expressing no opinion. He was followed by Shashi Tharoor, an Indian novelist and UN civil servant, and Latvian president Vaira Vike-Freiberga, the only woman candidate.
The council is scheduled to hold a potentially decisive vote on Monday, which for the first time will reveal whether any of the five permanent members veto the candidates.
UN officials and other diplomats say that while Mr Ban lacks charisma, he is an experienced and skilful diplomat who knows the UN from a stint as Korea's ambassador there.
He also speaks English and French, a prerequisite for the job.