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Azerbaijanâ€™s non-permanent membership in UN Security Council in the focus of international media

25 October 2011 09:06 (UTC +04:00)

â€œAzerbaijan and Slovenia were locked in a contest for the fifth seat this year. Azerbaijan was the clear front-runner and after 16 rounds of voting, Slovenia decided to pull outâ€, CNN said.

â€œAzerbaijan will take the Eastern European seat at the UN Security Council on January 1, 2012 until the end of 2013â€, Voice of America said. â€œThe Slovenian representative announced his country was withdrawing after it lost the 17th round vote 77 to 116. In the final round, Azerbaijan got 155 votes, Slovenia 13 and Hungary 1, with 24 countries abstainingâ€.

â€œAzerbaijan has received the two-thirds support of U.N. member states needed for a Security Council seat after its lead competitor Slovenia dropped out. Azerbaijan and Slovenia went into a second day of balloting Monday after each failed to get the two-thirds majority needed from the General Assembly. They were competing for the sole eastern European seat on the U.N.’s most powerful body. The Slovenian representative announced his country was withdrawing after it lost the 17th round vote 77 to 116. Four of the 15-member council’s five new members were chosen Friday: Pakistan, Morocco, Guatemala, and Togo. In the final round, Azerbaijan got 155 votes, Slovenia 13 and Hungary one. Twenty-four countries abstainedâ€, The Associated Press said.

Armenian media tried to overshadow Azerbaijanâ€™s victory, but Armenian journalists acknowledged that Azerbaijan began campaign for the UN Security Council long ago and therefore achieved its goal.