The race to become the next leader of the United Nations moved into a higher gear with the four declared candidates facing hours of questions over two days. Top among them: can the U.N. be made effective again?

Rafael Mariano Grossi, an Argentine diplomat who heads the International Atomic Energy Agency, struck a downbeat note about the global body¡¯s future during his interview to replace Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

¡°This election, or selection, process is so consequential, and this is because we are at a time when there are enormous, huge doubts about our institution,¡± Grossi said on Tuesday. ¡°The direction in which the U.N. is moving is not the one we would all like to see.¡±