Somalia Elected to UN Security Council as Non-Permanent Member

New York, USA — Somalia was elected on Thursday to serve a two-year term as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, marking a significant achievement for the East African nation. Alongside Somalia, Denmark, Greece, Pakistan, and Panama also secured seats on the Council in a secret ballot held by the UN General Assembly.

The 193-member General Assembly elected five countries to the Council, which comprises 15 members. The 10 non-permanent seats are distributed among regional groups, which usually nominate their candidates. This year, the regional groups successfully put forward their selections without any surprises.

Somalia was nominated for the African seat, Pakistan for the Asia-Pacific seat, Panama for the Latin America and Caribbean seat, and Denmark and Greece for the two mainly Western seats. These newly elected members will begin their terms on January 1, 2025, replacing Mozambique, Japan, Ecuador, Malta, and Switzerland, whose terms end on December 31, 2024.

The Security Council, tasked with maintaining international peace and security, includes five permanent members with veto power — the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, and France. The new non-permanent members will join the five countries elected last year: Algeria, Guyana, South Korea, Sierra Leone, and Slovenia.

Despite its critical role, the Security Council has faced challenges in addressing certain global conflicts due to the veto powers held by its permanent members. For example, Russia’s veto has hindered action on Ukraine, while close U.S. ties to Israel have complicated calls for a cessation of hostilities in Gaza.

All five countries elected on Thursday have previously served on the Security Council: Pakistan seven times, Panama five times, Denmark four times, Greece twice, and Somalia once.

There is widespread consensus that the Security Council needs reform to better reflect the contemporary world, rather than the post-World War II era. However, the specifics of how to achieve this remain contentious, with national interests causing significant disagreements. These disputes have prevented substantial reform of the UN's most powerful body for four decades.

As Somalia and the other newly elected members prepare to take their seats, the international community will be watching closely to see how they contribute to the Council’s efforts to uphold global peace and security.