Islamabad, Jan 1: Pakistan began its two-year tenure as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Wednesday, with Ambassador Munir Akram saying that the Pakistani delegation will play an “active and constructive” role in addressing key challenges facing the world.“Our presence will be felt in the Security Council,” Ambassador Akram, Pakistan’s top diplomat at the UN, told state-run APP (Associated Press of Pakistan) news agency.
Pakistan will sit in the Security Council for the 2025-26 term as a non-permanent member — 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 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 multi-dimensional arms race,” 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,” he said.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Ishaq Dar said that Pakistan begins its term as a non-permanent member of the UNSC with a rich legacy of experience and commitment to the principles and purposes of the UN Charter.
He was addressing a reception hosted at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Foreign Office said in a statement.
The event was attended by the heads of resident missions of the UN Security Council Member States in Islamabad and senior officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Dar highlighted Pakistan’s contributions to international peace and security, especially through its active role in UN peacekeeping and peacebuilding endeavours around the world.
Dar said that Pakistan looked forward to “seeking just and peaceful resolution of situations on the agenda of the UN Security Council”.
“As a member of the council, Pakistan will continue to oppose the unilateral and illegal use or threat of force; combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations; and support effective UN peacekeeping, and peacebuilding efforts,” he said.
Pakistan replaced Japan, which currently occupies the Asian seat in the Security Council, a primary instrument for establishing and maintaining international peace.
Pakistan’s earlier terms on the council were in 2012-13, 2003-04, 1993-94, 1983-84, 1976-77, 1968-69 and 1952-53.
In the June election in the General Assembly, Pakistan was elected along with Denmark, Greece, Panama and Somalia — to replace Japan, Ecuador, Malta, Mozambique and Switzerland whose terms end on December 31, 2024.
The new members join the five veto-wielding permanent members the United States, Russia, China, United Kingdom and France and the five countries elected as non-permanent members last year Algeria, Guyana, South Korea, Sierra Leone and Slovenia.