Brazil returns to UN Security Council

By Mario Villar

United Nations, Jun 11 (EFE).- Brazil, which boasts Latin America’s largest population and most important economy, will hold one of the non-permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council for the 2022-2023 term after a decade-long absence.

Already endorsed by the Latin American and Caribbean bloc, the Brazilian candidacy sailed through the General Assembly on Friday unopposed with 181 of 193 possible votes.

Albania, Gabon, Ghana and the United Arab Emirates were ratified to replace Estonia, Niger, Tunisia and Vietnam, respectively.

Brazil, set to take over the spot now held by Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, will reinforce the Latin American presence on the Council, where Mexico – second in the region in population and GDP – began a two-year term on Jan. 1.

Election to the Council for an 11th time is “an acknowledgment of the historic Brazilian contribution to international peace and security,” the country’s foreign ministry said in a statement following the vote.

The only other nation with 11 terms is Japan.

Brazil and Japan have spent decades lobbying for a remodeling of the Security Council that would see them become permanent members.

Seventy-six years after the end of World War II, the 15-seat Council’s structure continues to reflect the global balance of power at that moment in history.

The victors in the war – the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom and France – are permanent members with veto power, while the 10 remaining seats are occupied on a rotating basis.

One of the most frequently discussed reform proposals would create four new permanent spots to be held by Brazil, Germany, India and Japan.

The Brazilian government has already signaled that as a non-permanent member, it will continue to advocate a reform “to safeguard the legitimacy of United Nations action in the face of the multiple and complex challenges that the international community faces.”

Brazil is returning to a Security Council that has become deeply divided between the US and its allies on one side, and Russia and China on the other.

That polarization has left the Council unable to take a unified stance on issues such as the conflict in Syria and the recent military coup in Myanmar.

Other pressing matters before the Security Council include Israel-Palestine, the wars in Libya and Yemen and crises in a number of African nations. EFE mvs/dr