S. Korea to bid for non-permanent seat at U.N. Security Council: official

SEOUL, June 15 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will make a bid for a seat as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for the 2024-25 period, a foreign ministry official said Tuesday.

The government plans to launch an official campaign at the U.N. General Assembly in September and work its way toward the election, which will be held in June 2023, the official said on background.

If elected, it will mark the third time for South Korea to serve as one of the 10 non-permanent UNSC members. Seoul served the two previous seats during the 1996-97 and 2013-14 terms.

"We have developed into a leading and responsible democratic nation over the past 30 years since our accession to the U.N.," the official said. "We plan to use our 30th anniversary as an opportunity to open another 30 years with the U.N. and meet the expectations from the international community."

The current non-permanent members include: Albania, Brazil, Gabon, Ghana, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) -- the five countries that were newly elected last week -- and India, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico and Norway.

The council replaces half of its non-permanent members for every two-year term.

To win a non-permanent seat, a country needs to secure at least two thirds of the votes from the countries attending the general assembly, out of the 193 member states.

elly@yna.co.kr
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