Minsk vows to stay active at United Nations after losing Security Council bid

June 6, BPN. Minsk has said it will not scale back its activity at the United Nations after losing a bid to join the Security Council as a non-permanent member.

Foreign ministry spokesman Anatol Hłaz thanked the countries that backed Minsk and resisted “attempts to manipulate the election procedure.” He tweeted that Minsk will keep working on foreign policy initiatives and preparing for the upcoming session of the General Assembly in September.

Minsk’s UN ambassador Valancin Rybakoŭ claimed some countries were pressured to vote for Slovenia and threatened with funding cuts.

Slovenia won a seat on the UN Security Council today, defeating Minsk in a vote in the General Assembly.

It received 153 votes, while Minsk got 38. The two countries were competing for one seat allocated to Eastern European states.

Minsk had applied for membership in the council in 2007, while Slovenia did so in 2021. Belarusian opposition groups had urged UN members to reject the authoritarian government’s bid.

The Security Council is the United Nations’ most powerful body, responsible for maintaining international peace and security. It has five permanent members with veto power – China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States – and 10 non-permanent members elected for two-year terms.