The 2012 United Nations Security Council election was held on 18 October 2012 during the
67th session of the
United Nations General Assembly
A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company.
Specific examples of general assembly include:
Churches
* General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...
, held at the
Headquarters of the United Nations in
New York City. The elections were for five non-permanent seats on the
UN Security Council for two-year mandates commencing on 1 January 2013 to replace the five countries whose terms expired. The countries elected were
Argentina,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
,
Luxembourg, the
Republic of Korea, and
Rwanda
Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...
with
Luxembourg being elected for the first time.
Rules
In accordance with the rotation rules whereby the ten non-permanent UNSC seats rotate among the
various regional blocs into which UN member states traditionally divide themselves for voting and representation purposes, the five available seats were allocated as follows:
*One for
Africa (previously held by
South Africa)
*One for the
Asia-
Pacific Group (previously held by
India)
*One for
Latin America (previously held by
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
)
*Two for the
Western European and Others Group (previously held by
Germany and
Portugal)
The election is for the term from 1 January 2013 to 31 December 2014.
Candidates
Western European and Others Group
Asia-Pacific Group
Latin American and Caribbean Group
African Group
Rwanda controversy
Prior to the actual vote, the representative of the
Democratic Republic of the Congo rose to speak and said that Rwanda "was an oasis for criminals" operating in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and on those grounds, she objected to Rwanda as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.
A confidential U.N. report was also leaked before the election, which stated that Rwanda is involved in the current
conflict in the eastern DRC and that "Rwandan officials exercise overall command and strategic planning for
M23 ... Rwanda continues to violate the arms embargo through direct military support to M23 rebels, facilitation of recruitment, encouragement and facilitation of FARDC (Congolese army) desertions as well as the provision of arms and ammunition, intelligence, and political advice." Rwandan U.N. representative Olivier Nduhungirehe responded by saying, "The members of the General Assembly know exactly what our record is and they cannot be deterred or swayed by a baseless report, which has no credibility."
Results
Argentina, Australia, and Rwanda were elected in the first round of voting,
while Luxembourg and the Republic of Korea were elected in the second. In both rounds, 193 voting papers were distributed.
African and Asia-Pacific Groups
Latin America and Caribbean Group
Western European and Other Group
See also
*
List of members of the United Nations Security Council
*
Australia and the United Nations
Australia was one of the founding members of the United Nations (UN) in 1945 and has been actively engaged in the organisation since its formation. The UN is seen by the Government of Australia, Australian Government as a means to influence event ...
*
Korea and the United Nations
The Republic of Korea (commonly known as ''South Korea'') and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (commonly known as ''North Korea'') were simultaneously admitted to the United Nations (UN) in 1991. On 8 August 1991, the UN Security Cou ...
*
European Union and the United Nations
The European Union (EU) has had permanent observer status at the United Nations (UN) since 1974, and has had enhanced participation rights since 2011. The EU itself does not have voting rights but it is represented alongside its 27 members, on ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:United Nations Security Council election, 2012
2012 in international relations
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
2012 elections
Non-partisan elections
October 2012 events