[ICANN]<http://www.icann.org/> News Alert https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2014-10-23-en ________________________________ ICANN CEO Congratulates Newly Elected ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao 23 October 2014 Fadi Chehadé, The President and Chief Executive Officer of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has extended his congratulations and best wishes to the newly elected Secretary-General of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). "We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Houlin Zhao on his election as the ITU Secretary-General," said Chehadé. "His global support was punctuated by the fact that he obtained 152 votes of the 156 countries that were present and voting in the election." Zhao will succeed current ITU Secretary-General Dr. Hamadoun Toure in January and Chehadé made a point of underscoring Dr. Toure's contributions to enhancing lines of communication with ICANN. "We are grateful to Dr. Toure for the bridges he helped build between the ITU and ICANN," said Chehadé. "Our interactions have been built on a foundation of mutual respect and a shared belief that the Internet has an increasingly important role in global socioeconomic development. We are enthused at the prospect of continuing those efforts with Houlin Zhao."