WUNRN
UN News Service
NEW NON-PERMANENT MEMBERS ELECTED TO
UN SECURITY COUNCIL
16 October 2014 – In three rounds of voting the United Nations General Assembly today elected Angola, Malaysia, New Zealand, Spain and Venezuela to serve as non-permanent members on the Security Council for two-year terms beginning on 1 January 2015.
The new members will serve on
the Council until 31 December 2016.
Angola Malaysia,
The five overall seats available
for election in 2014, distributed regionally, were: one seat for the African
Group (currently held by Rwanda); one seat for the Group of Asia- Pacific Group
(currently held by the Republic of Korea); one seat for the Group of Latin
American and Caribbean States, (currently held by Argentina); and two seats for
the Western European and Others Group (currently held by Australia and
Luxembourg).
The five permanent Council
members, which each wield the power of veto, are
Under the UN
Charter, the Security
Council has primary responsibility for the maintenance of
international peace and security. Each of the Council’s members has one vote.
Under the Charter, all UN Member States are obligated to comply with Council
decisions.
The Security Council takes the
lead in determining the existence of a threat to the peace or act of
aggression. It calls upon the parties to a dispute to settle it by peaceful
means and recommends methods of adjustment or terms of settlement. In some
cases, the Security Council can resort to imposing sanctions or even authorize
the use of force to maintain or restore international peace and security.
The Security Council also
recommends to the General Assembly the appointment of the Secretary-General and
the admission of new Members to the United Nations. And, together with the
General Assembly, it elects the judges of the International Court of Justice.