January 11, 2022: Which five countries were the latest to join the UN Security Council? Read this article to find out.
The United Nations Security Council is one of the six main wings of the United Nations (UN). It is responsible for maintaining international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, and approving any changes made to the UN Charter (the organisation’s foundational treaty).
The Security Council comprises fifteen members, out of which five are permanent, namely, the United States, United Kingdom, France, Russia, and China. The other ten are temporary members that are elected on the basis of geographic region.
The non-permanent members are elected every year on January 1st, with five being replaced each year.
This year, Mozambique, Ecuador, Japan, Malta, and Switzerland got a formal welcome into the U.N. Security Council, as their officials installed their national flags on Tuesday alongside those of other members outside the council chambers. The countries they replaced are India, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico and Norway, whose terms ended on December 31, 2022.
Mozambican Ambassador Pedro Comissário Afonso of Mozambique called it “an historic date” as his country joined the U.N.'s most powerful body.