Somalia Wins Non-Permanent Seat On UN Security Council:
Somalia has reached a major milestone by becoming the first country since the 1970s to have a non-permanent place on the UN Security Council.
- This change, which was revealed after a vote in the 193-member UN General Assembly in which Somalia got 179 votes, is a major step forward in the country’s international relations and government after decades of civil war.
- The seat is meant for East Africa, and Somalia won it without any competition.
- After President Mohamed Siad Barre was removed from office in 1991, Somalia fell into civil war. Rival clans and leaders fought each other for years.
- The UN and the African Union (AU) have played a big role in trying to settle the country and get central government back in place during these troubled decades.
- Recently, the central government has also been fighting the Islamist terrorist group al-Shabab. As foreign troops leave, these efforts are getting stronger.
- The Security Council has 15 members: the US, the UK, France, China, and Russia are the five permanent members; the other ten members are non-permanent members.
- These aren’t permanent seats; they’re split up by global area, and each person serves for two years without the power to veto.
- Non-permanent members have a lot of power because they can change the way debates and votes are conducted on important topics like peacekeeping missions and sanctions.
