Pakistan begins eighth term as non-permanent UNSC member today

NEW YORK – Pakistan is set to begin its two-year tenure as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council today, January 1.

Pakistan’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Munir Akram said Pakistan will play an active and constructive role in addressing key challenges facing the world.

Pakistan will replace Japan, which currently occupies the Asian seat in the Security Council.

It is for the eighth time that the country has had a seat on the 15-member body’s horseshoe table.

In June, Pakistan was elected to the Council with a massive majority as a Council’s non-permanent member, polling 182 votes in the 193-member General Assembly — far more than the required 124 votes representing a two-thirds majority.

“We enter the Council at a time of great geopolitical turbulence, intense competition between the two largest powers, raging wars in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and elsewhere and a sharply escalating and multidimensional arms race,” Ambassador Akram said.

“As a responsible State — the fifth largest by population — Pakistan will play an active and constructive role, in accordance with the UN Charter, to halt wars, promote the pacific settlement of disputes and contain the negative impacts of great power rivalries, the arms race, new weapons and domains of conflict as well as the spreading scourge of terrorism.”

At the same time, he added, Pakistan is also obliged to address — in the Council and other UN forums — the threats posed to peace and security in our region by cross border terrorism, the suppression of Kashmiri self determination, the growing arms imbalance in South Asia as well as the discriminatory restraints imposed against Pakistan to compromise its strategic deterrence capabilities.

“Fortunately, Pakistan has a well trained and professional team at the UN with the proven capacity to address these challenges effectively. Our presence will be felt in the Security Council, “ Ambassador Akram remarked.

Pakistan’s earlier terms on the council were in 2012-13, 2003-04, 1993-94, 1983-84, 1976-77, 1968-69 and 1952-53.