The United Nations has elected Thursday five new non-permanent members of the Security Council.
The five candidates endorsed by regional groups were Chad, Chile, Lithuania, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia.
Reports say Lithuania was the top vote-getter with 187 votes followed by Nigeria and Chile in the first round of voting by the 193-member General Assembly.
The newly-elected five countries will assume their posts on Jan. 1 and will serve until the end of 2015. They will set to replace Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Morocco, Guatemala and Togo.
UN PHOTO
Philippe Bolopion, United Nations director for Human Rights Watch, denounced the election of Chad, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia
US congratulates the newly-elected countries
In her reamrks in New York, US Permanent Representative to UN Samantha Power says the United States congratulates Chad, Chile, Lithuania, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia on their election today as non-permanent members of the UN Security Council for 2014 and 2015.
She states that as the international community looks ahead to their upcoming terms on the Council, the United States remains committed to addressing the most pressing threats to international peace and security.
Among those issues that need to be addressed is the implementio of Security Council Resolution 2118 to eliminate Syria’s chemical weapons; furthering efforts to address the humanitarian crisis and work toward a political solution in Syria.
In addition, the US also supports efforts to tackling ongoing and emerging conflicts in the Great Lakes, Sudan and South Sudan, Somalia, Mali, the Central African Republic and elsewhere.
Who are members of the Security Council?
Reports say seats in the Security Council are allocated by region, with regional groups nominating candidates.
United States, Britain, France, Russia and China have permanent seats on the Security Council. The other 10 seats are awarded for periods of two years by the General Assembly and a vote is held each year for five of the seats.
