New York, 17 Oct. (Agencies) – Libya has been elected to the United Nations Security Council in a move that signals its return to global affairs.
Burkina Faso, Costa Rica, Croatia, Vietnam were also elected on Tuesday to serve as non-permanent members of the council for two-years from January 2008.
The US previously blocked Libya’s attempts in 1995 and 2000 to win a seat but took no action to oppose the move in the current round of voting.
Libya, Vietnam and the west African state of Burkina Faso easily obtained a two-thirds majority after being endorsed by regional groupings.
The newly elected countries will replace Congo, Ghana, Peru, Qatar and Slovakia when their terms on the 15-member body expire at the end of this year.
The terms will mark the Council debut for both Vietnam and Croatia, while it will be the second occasion for Burkina Faso and Libya and the third stint for Costa Rica.
The members were elected according to an agreed geographic allocation, which awards three seats to African and Asian countries, one to eastern European States, and one to the Latin American and Caribbean region during this year’s round of elections.
Unlike the five permanent members – China, the US, Russia Britain and France – the non-permanent members have no individual veto.
But an alliance of seven can stop a resolution even if the permanent five want it.
Libya, once known for supporting terrorist organisations, was linked to the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103 in Lockerbie Scotland that killed 270 people. The bombing led to sanctions against Libya.
The Council’s five other non-permanent members, whose terms end on 31 December 2008, are Belgium, Indonesia, Italy, Panama and South Africa
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