Comment by the Information and Press Department of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the election of non-permanent members of the UN Security Council On the 17 October, in the course of the vote in the UN General Assembly five non-permanent members of the UN Security Council were elected for 2014-2015 – Lithuania, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Chad and Chile, whose candidates were proposed by relevant regional groups based on applications from these countries. However, after the end of the election procedure in the UN General Assembly, a Saudi Arabiannews agency distributed an official statement that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia had said that the country had turned down its place on the Security Council, referring to “double standards” in the activity of the Security Council, whose work methods do not allow it to implement its functions to maintain international peace and security. We are surprised by this unprecedented decision of Saudi Arabia, whose candidacy at the elections in the General Assembly was supported by the overwhelming majority of UN member states. We are perplexed by the arguments the Kingdom uses to substantiate their position. Reproaches addressed to the UNSC in the context of the Syrian crisis sound especially weird after the Security Council has unanimously adopted resolution 2118, forming the legal framework for the comprehensive settlement of the conflict in Syria. Thus, by its decision Saudi Arabia has removed itself from collective work within the framework of the UN Security Council to maintain international peace and security. We expect that the Asian regional group will choose another candidate to replace the non-permanent member of the Security Council in the near future to allow the UN General Assembly to complete the election procedure. We assume that by participation in the work of the Security Council, new non-permanent members of the Council will contribute to the approval of the rule of law in international relations, the increase of the key role of the UNSC to settle crisis situations, and maintain the priority of peaceful political and diplomatic methods of their resolution without interference in the internal affairs of sovereign states on the basis of strict adherence to the UN Charter. For its part, Russia is ready for constructive cooperation with all newly elected members of the UN Security Council. 18 October 2013
Posted on: Tue, 22 Oct 2013 19:28:37 +0000
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