Posted inPolitics & Economics

Kuwait takes seat on the UN Security Council

The country is replacing Egypt as the Arab Group’s representative on the council

Kuwait UN Ambassador Mansour Al-Otaibi
Kuwait UN Ambassador Mansour Al-Otaibi

Kuwait will begin its membership at the UN Security Council on January 1st after a 40-year hiatus.

The Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) quoted Kuwaiti Deputy Premier and Minister of Foreign Affairs as saying that Kuwait will remain neutral as it works to resolve global issues.

Additionally, he added that Kuwait would work with the other UNSC member states to peacefully end the world’s ongoing conflicts and wars, and stressed the importance of reforms within the UN’s various organisations to allow them to properly perform their duties around the world.

Kuwait’s membership in the Security Council will last two years. Kuwait is succeeding Egypt as representing the Arab Group in the UN.

KUNA also quoted Kuwait UN Ambassador Mansour Al-Otaibi as saying that 188 of 193 UN member states voted for Kuwait’s membership in the council, a sign of the international community’s trust in the Gulf nation.

Al-Otaibi also called for increasing the number of states in the Security Council, and noted that Arab countries are demanding that an Arab country be given a permanent seat.

In addition to Kuwait, Cote d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, the Netherlands, Peru and Poland will begin two-year memberships on the Security Council, in addition to the its permanent members, the US, UK, France, Russia and China.

The new members replace Egypt, Senegal, Japan, Uruguay and Ukraine.

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