Candidates for the next United Nations Secretary-General have gathered on South Korea's Jeju Island.

They are here to attend the "Jeju Forum," where international peace issues are discussed.

As the term of the current Secretary-General, António Guterres, ends at the end of this year, the race to lead the UN starting in January next year has begun in earnest.

Five of the six candidates attended the Jeju Forum in person.

María Fernanda Espinosa, former President of the UN General Assembly, who previously served as Ecuador's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of National Defense.

Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and a former Argentine diplomat.

Rebeca Grynspan, Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and former Vice President of Costa Rica, whose family history includes her parents fleeing Europe as refugees during World War II.

Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Permanent Representative of Guyana to the UN, who is a former teacher and Minister of Foreign Affairs.

And Macky Sall, former President of Senegal, who majored in geology and worked in the oil industry.

Michelle Bachelet, former President of Chile, who served as the inaugural Executive Director of UN Women and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, participated via a video message.

The candidates spoke with one voice, emphasizing the need for UN reform.

Former General Assembly President Espinosa emphasized "preventive diplomacy" and "early engagement," stating that the reality of having the highest number of armed conflicts since World War II could mean the UN failed to act and prevent them early on.

[María Fernanda Espinosa / Former President of the UN General Assembly: The core of my campaign is prevention. It is early engagement. It is about making prevention a culture and an operational method within the system.]

Secretary-General Grynspan said that the proportion of young people within the UN is excessively low, and that the UN must reopen its doors to the youth.

[Rebeca Grynspan / Secretary-General of UNCTAD: Do you know what percentage of UN staff is under the age of 30? It is 4 percent. 4 percent. We must reopen the doors to young people.]

Ambassador Rodrigues-Birkett also emphasized that the UN must change to keep pace with the times, and that young people should not be mere onlookers but active participants in UN policy discussions.

[Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett / Permanent Representative of Guyana to the UN: We must consult with young people in every process the UN is involved in. Young people must be included as shapers and contributors of the policies the UN engages with. We must also fully involve youth in discussions on AI governance.]

The discussion also touched upon how to control and utilize artificial intelligence (AI).

IAEA Director General Grossi said that the UN must approach AI governance with caution.

[Rafael Grossi / Director General of the IAEA: We must be careful in this field. We need to strike the right balance between having the dynamism that helps the economy, education, and innovation, while at the same time avoiding excesses and the absence of the 'human-in-the-loop' element. In the end, that is what we need.]

Former President Macky Sall argued that AI and advanced technologies should not become a privilege for a few countries, calling for a fair redistribution of resources and UN reform.

[Macky Sall / Former President of Senegal: Access to digital markets, capital markets, financial markets, and technology must be increased. Artificial intelligence (AI) must not become the exclusive domain of a few privileged nations.]

The dynamics of the candidates are also drawing attention.

Except for former President Macky Sall, all five other candidates are from Latin America and the Caribbean, and four of them are women.

Given that there has been no Secretary-General from this region since 1991, some observe that a candidate from Latin America and the Caribbean might have an advantage, but the ultimate key variable remains the Security Council.

The UN Secretary-General is appointed by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council, meaning it is difficult to receive a recommendation if even one of the five permanent members—the United States, China, Russia, the United Kingdom, and France—opposes.

Ultimately, whether it is the possibility of the first female Secretary-General or the regional rotation argument for Latin America and the Caribbean, they must eventually overcome the interests of the major powers.

Reported by Kim Hye-young | Video by Kim Nam-sung | Video Editing by Jeon Min-gyu and Park Na-young | Produced by SBS Digital News