India was elected as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council on 12.10.2010 with an overwhelming number of countries endorsing its sole candidature from the Asian group.
After A gap of 19 years, India will once again be at the UN high table — the Security Council — as a non-permanent member, in what is expected to give a fillip to its bid for a permanent seat.
In polling for 10 seats that took place at the U.N. headquarters in New York, as many as 187 countries in the 192-member UN General Assembly voted for India, the largest support received by any country for a non-permanent seat in the past five years. India has been on the UNSC six times in the past.
Five votes that didn’t come to India, one country backed Pakistan while another rooted for Swaziland. Another member wasn’t present, one abstained and the fifth voted against India. Since it is a secret ballot, the identities of these countries are not known.
Other non-permanent members elected today were Germany, South Africa, Colombia and Portugal.
To win, India needed support of two-thirds of the 192-member General Assembly. After Kazakhstan pulled out of the race early this year, India was the lone candidate from Asia. Its two-year term at the Security Council begins on January 1, 2011.
It is of significance that, for the first time, the Security Council will witness the simultaneous presence of all BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) and IBSA (India, Brazil, South Africa) countries, and three of the four G4 countries (India, Brazil and Germany). The Council will also include a number of developing countries with which we have close ties as well as some of our global strategic partners.
India had no competitor from Asia group after the withdrawal of Kazakhstan earlier in 2010.
The last time India was part of the UNSC was in 1991-92. It suffered a shock defeat in 1996 when it lost to Japan despite banking on solidarity among developed countries. India will take over as a UNSC non-permanent member from Japan on January 1, 2011, for the seventh time.
The UNSC has five permanent members — the United States, Russia, China, France and the United Kingdom — who have veto rights. There are also 10 rotating members who have the right to vote, but cannot veto a resolution.
“This resounding endorsement of India’s candidature at the United Nations reaffirms the overwhelming support India enjoys in the international community,” External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna said at a press conference in New Delhi soon after the results were known on 12.10.2010.
While thanking all the member states who supported India’s candidature, Mr. Krishna said the country would have to live up to the responsibility entrusted by such a large number of countries. He also hoped India’s objective approach would pave the way for its entry as a permanent member. “India will demonstrate to the world that India is good for the world,” he added.
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