"Alhamdulillah (praise be to God), during the UN General Assembly, Indonesia was elected as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council representing the Asia-Pacific Group to replace Kazahkstan, which will conclude its terms at the end of 2018"
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia was elected a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for a two-year term on Friday.

"Alhamdulillah (praise be to God), during the UN General Assembly, Indonesia was elected as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council representing the Asia-Pacific Group to replace Kazahkstan, which will conclude its terms at the end of 2018," the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Retno Marsudi, said in a video conference live from New York.

Indonesia won 144 votes to beat the Maldives, 46 votes, for the one seat allocated to the Asia-pacific group. As many as 190 member-states of the UN voted in the election; only 126 votes, or two-thirds, were required to win.

The President of the 72nd Session of the UN General Assembly, Miroslav Lajcak, announced that Indonesia was elected a non-permanent member of the UNSC for 2019-2020 along with South Africa from the African Group; the Dominican Republic from the Latin American and Caribbean Group; and Belgium and Germany from the Western European and Others Group.

Indonesia has held the seat earlier in 1973-1974, 1995-1996, and 2007-2008.

The Security Council has 15 members -- five permanent (United States, United Kingdom, France, Russia, and China) and 10 non-permanent serving for two years.

Reporter: Aditya Eko Sigit Wicaksono
Editor: Bambang Purwanto
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