INDIA ELECTED NON-PERMANENT MEMBER OF UN SECURITY COUNCIL

Member States elect India to the non-permanent seat of the Security Council for the term 2021-22 with overwhelming support. India gets 184 out of the 192 valid votes polled.

WHAT ARE ‘NON-PERMANENT SEATS’ AT THE UNSC?

• The UNSC is composed of 15 members:
• Five permanent members — China, France, Russian Federation, the United States, and the United Kingdom — and 10 non-permanent members who are elected by the General Assembly.
• The non-permanent members are elected for two-year terms — so every year, the General Assembly elects five non-permanent members out of the total 10.

• These 10 seats are distributed among the regions of the world:
• Five seats for African and Asian countries;
• one for Eastern European countries;
• two for Latin American and Caribbean countries;
• and two for Western European and Other Countries.

• Of the five seats for Africa and Asia, three are for Africa and two for Asia. Also, there is an informal understanding between the two groups to reserve one seat for an Arab country.
• The Africa and Asia Pacific group takes turns every two years to put up an Arab candidate.

• Elections for terms beginning in even-numbered years select two African members, and one each within Eastern Europe, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean.
• Terms beginning in odd-numbered years consist of two Western European and Other members, and one each from Asia Pacific, Africa, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

• The current non-permanent members of the Security Council are Belgium, Dominican Republic, Germany, Indonesia, and South Africa, all of whose terms end this year;
• and Estonia, Niger, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Tunisia, and Vietnam, whose terms end in 2021.
• India begins its term in the beginning of 2021, and will hold the position until the end of 2022.

HAS INDIA BEEN IN THE UNSC EARLIER?

India has earlier been a non-permanent member of the Security Council in 1950-51, 1967-68, 1972-73, 1977-78, 1984-85, 1991-92 and 2011-12. For the 2011-12 term, India won 187 of 190 votes after Kazakhstan stood down from its candidacy.