NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 18, said he’s deeply grateful for the overwhelming support shown by the global community for India’s membership of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). The Prime Minister further said that India will work all the UNSC member nations to promote global peace, security, resilience and equity in the world. “Deeply grateful for the overwhelming support shown by the global community for India’s membership of the @UN Security Council. India will work with all member countries to promote global peace, security, resilience and equity,” PM Modi said in a tweet. India garnered 184 votes in the 193-member General Assembly to secure its place for the 2021-22 term. Besides India, Ireland, Mexico and Norway also won the UNSC elections. “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,” India’s Permanent Mission to the UN tweeted.
Ambassador T S Tirumurti said India’s win is a “testament” to PM Modi’s “vision” and his inspiring global leadership. “I am truly delighted that India has been elected as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for 2021-22. We have received overwhelming support and I’m deeply humbled by the tremendous confidence which the member states of the United Nations have reposed in India,” Tirumurti said in a video message.
Along with India, Ireland, Mexico and Norway also won the Security Council elections held on June 17. There were 192 Member States present and voting and the 2/3 required majority was 128. The 193-member UNSC holds elections every year to elect five non-permanent members for a two-year term at the UN.
Canada lost out to Ireland and Norway in a hotly contested election that included Ireland enlisting the help of U2 singer Bono and taking UN ambassadors to a U2 concert and Canada taking envoys to a Celine Dion concert. Mexico and India were elected unopposed. Kenya and Djibouti were competing for the final seat, but there was no clear winner.
The new members will start their two-year term on the 15-member council on January 1, 2021. After operating virtually since March amid the coronavirus pandemic, diplomats – wearing masks and social distancing – returned to the General Assembly hall on June 17 to cast their secret ballots at allotted times.
They also elected – unopposed – Turkish diplomat Volkan Bozkir as the president of the 75th session of the U.N. General Assembly who is expected to take up the role later this year. The Security Council is the only UN body that can make legally binding decisions like imposing sanctions and authorising the use of force. It has five permanent veto-wielding members – the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia.
India’s past membership terms in UNSC
Previously, India has been elected as a non-permanent member of the Council for the years 1950-1951, 1967-1968, 1972-1973, 1977-1978, 1984-1985, 1991-1992 and most recently in 2011-2012.
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