Updated after third paragraph

France, Strasbourg, September 29 / Trend News, A.Maherramli /

Norwegian Social Democrat Thorbjorn Jagland was elected the 13th Secretary General of the Council of Europe on Sept. 29.

On the second day of the autumn session of PACE, Sept. 29, a new Secretary General of PACE was elected. Gaining 165 votes, the former Norwegian Prime Minister Thorbjorn Jagland was elected for this post. PACE President declared him winner. He was elected to this post for five years and his powers will come into force on 1 October.

257 MPs participated in the voting. 12 votes were declared invalid. It is enough to gain 123 votes to elect a new secretary general. Polish candidate Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz gained 80 votes.

Nominations of former Norwegian Prime Minister Thorbjorn Jagland and former Prime Minister of Poland Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz were put to the voting, held on Tuesday.

Former Norwegian Prime Minister Thorbjorn Jagland, former Prime Minister of Poland Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz, former head of the Government of Belgium Luc van den Brande, and a member of the Hungarian Parliament Mathias Yorshina nominated for the post of General Secretary of the Council of Europe. At the summit of Council of Europe Committee of Ministers, which took place in May 2009 in Madrid, and at the September meeting in Strasbourg, were supported the two of the four candidates - T.Jagland and V. Cimoszewicz.