KENYA Wins Seat On UNITED NATIONS Security Council
Credit: Wikipedia Commons / Flag of the Republic of Kenya
By Gary Raynaldo DIPLOMATIC TIMES
UNITED NATIONS – NEW YORK- The Republic of Kenya has won a seat on the powerful United Nations Security Council for 2021/22 beating rival Djibouti. Kenya secured the 128 votes needed in the 191-nation General Assembly in New York Thursday to win a two year non-permanent seat. In Wednesday’s General Assembly elections, neither Kenya nor Djibouti got the necessary two-thirds’ vote, or 128 ballots. (Djibouti won 78 votes; Kenya, 113.) A second round of voting resumed today to call a winner between Kenya, an Anglophone powerhouse in Africa, and tiny Djibouti, a Francophone nation. Kenya obtained 129 votes to Djibouti’s 62 to take over the Africa seat that will be left vacant by South Africa. Each of the 193 delegations had a chance to cast a secret ballot in the Assembly Hall at designated times distributed throughout the day.
Fierce Battle Waged Between Kenya and Djibouti for Security Council’s Africa Seat
Intense diplomatic competition erupted between Nairobi and Djibouti for Africa’s seat on the UN Security Council. Kenya seemed the all out favorite to replace South Africa for the region’s seat on the powerful global body with solid backing from the African Union. However, things were turned nasty after Djibouti questioned the AU process. Djibouti even refused a request by the AU to withdraw its candidature and continued lobbying for the final Africa seat. The AU endorsed Kenya’s candidacy by a considerable 37-13 margin. Kenya’s endorsement by the AU counted heavily and it was regarded as the hands down current favourite for the seat until Djibouti kicked up a storm about the AU process, even going as far to call it illegal. Djibouti brought up Kenya’s boundary dispute with Somalia to question the country’s candidacy for a body tasked with the maintenance of world peace. Djibouti also played up its strategic location in the Horn-of-Africa and versatile role as a defence base for multiple countries – France, the United States, China and Japan – as well as its contributions in Somalia.
Congratulations to #TeamKenya 🇰🇪 pic.twitter.com/Ply8qoRzV6
— Dr. Monica Juma (@CSDefence_Kenya) June 18, 2020
“Today’s victory reaffirms the confidence of our beloved Africa, and the World, in or ability to contribute to international peace and security. As promised, we will serve the entire United Nations family.”
-Dr. Monica Juma, Kenya Ministry of Defense Cabinet Secretary.
Supporters say Nairobi can bring to the table its experience of supporting unstable governments in Somalia and South Sudan, and in assisting refugees in the region. These ongoing situations of tension are likely to consume some of the Council’s attention during Kenya’s term. Kenya is also a leader in East Africa.
Credit: UN Photo / Eskinder Debebe / Kelly Craft (pictured), Permanent Representative of the United States of America to the United Nations, casts her vote during the elections in the General Assembly Hall.
NORWAY, IRELAND, INDIA, MEXICO were also elected non-permanent seats on the UN Security Council in Wednesday’s elections. The new Security Council candidates were Canada, Ireland, and Norway, competing for two seats in the Western Europe and Others Group (WEOG); Djibouti and Kenya competing for one seat in the African Group; India running uncontested in the Asia-Pacific Group; and Mexico running uncontested in the Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC). The voting was held in a manner resulting from the global COVID-19 pandemic which compelled the closure of the UN headquarters in mid-March. According to the General Assembly decision adopted on 29 May, member cast ballots during designated time slots at the General Assembly Hall due to limitations on large gatherings at the UN due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The five new member country seats will replace Belgium, the Dominican Republic, Germany, Indonesia and South Africa, whose terms expire at the end of the year. There are 10 non-permanent members on the UNSC, elected for two-year terms and staggered into two groups, in other words every year five seats are rotated. Estonia was elected on June 7 last year, along with Niger, Tunisia, Vietnam and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The five permanent UNSC members are China, France, Russia, the U.K. and the U.S.
EUROPEAN UNION Looks Forward To Working With Kenya on UN Security Council
Congratulations to 🇰🇪Kenya, elected today to the 🇺🇳UN Security Council for 2021-22.
The 🇪🇺EU looks forward to further strengthening its cooperation with @KenyaMissionUN and all African countries represented at the #UNSC and beyond in the spirit of the Africa-EU Partnership pic.twitter.com/p2JOYNK0FY
— 🇪🇺EU at UN-NY🏳️🌈 (@EUatUN) June 18, 2020
Credit: UN Photo / Eskinder Debebe / Tijjani Muhammad-Bande (right), President of the seventy-fourth session of the United Nations General Assembly, presides over the elections. At left is Movses Abelian, Under-Secretary-General for General Assembly and Conference Management (DGACM).
