Kevin Rudd will not be a candidate for the United Nations' top job.
It's been reported that Mr Rudd is campaigning for the secretary-general job to replace Ban Ki-Moon, but a spokesperson for the former prime minister says it's not happening.
"It is agreed that the next rotation will be Eastern Europe, which has never had a secretary-general," the spokesperson told AAP.
"Last time I looked, Australia was not in Eastern Europe. For those reasons, Mr Rudd is not a candidate."
In an interview with Fairfax Media, Mr Rudd did not deny his interest in the job but said he took the "pragmatic" position that it was Europe's turn to take over leadership of the United Nations when Secretary-General Ban steps down in 2016.
Mr Rudd told Fairfax the "overwhelming consensus" was that the next secretary-general would come from eastern Europe.
However, other former Labor colleagues have reportedly confirmed Mr Rudd's interest in the role, while ambassador in the US, Kim Beazley, has told colleagues in the diplomatic community that the former prime minister is lobbying for the job.
A spokeswoman for the former PM said the story did "the rounds every two or three months, particularly on a slow news day".
"The answer now, as it has previously been, is that Mr Rudd is not a candidate," she said in a statement.
"Mr Rudd has made his position clear about the position of UNSG (United Nations secretary-general) numerous times."
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