Ethiopia, Bolivia, Sweden, Kazakhstan elected non-permanent UNSC members

United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on 28 June 2016 elected Ethiopia, Bolivia, Sweden and Kazakhstan as non-permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).

The two-year terms at UNSC of the new members will begin from 1 January 2016 and run through 31 December 2018.

The 193-member UN body conducted the elections for five non-permanent seats. A third round of voting is due to take place on 29 June 2016 for the final available seat with Italy competing against The Netherlands.

These newly-elected countries will replace Spain, Malaysia, New Zealand, Angola and Venezuela.

Process of Election

In the election of the five nations, the members of the General Assembly voted by secret ballot for five seats divided by geographical grouping – three from Africa and the Asia-Pacific region, one from Eastern Europe, and one from Latin America and the Caribbean.

• Bolivia and Ethiopia were chosen by their regional groups and had no competitors.

• Kazakhstan won the seat reserved for Asia Pacific against Thailand.

• Italy, the Netherlands and Sweden had competed for two seats for Western Europe.

United Nations Security Council

Under the UN Charter, the Security Council has the primary responsibility for international peace and security, with all UN Member States required to comply with Council decisions.

The Council’s 10 non-permanent seats are allocated according to a rotation pattern set by the Assembly in 1963, to ensure a proportionate representation over time from the different parts of the world: five from African and Asian States; one from Eastern European States; two from Latin American States; and two from Western European and Other States.

The Security Council has 15 members, including five permanent. The five permanent members, each with the power of veto, are China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States. Other current non-permanent members are Japan, Egypt, Senegal, Ukraine and Uruguay.

Responsibility of the Security Council

• The Security Council is responsible for determining the existence of a threat against peace and to respond to an act of aggression.

• It is also responsible for finding peaceful means to settle a conflict or a dispute between States.

• In some cases, the Council can resort to sanctions or even authorize the use of force to maintain or restore international peace and security.

• It also recommends to the General Assembly the appointment of the Secretary General and the admission of new Members to the United Nations.

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