According to The Himalayan Times daily, Bhutan has filed candidacy for a non-permanent seat in the Security Council for the term 2013 to 2014.
Bhutan`s Minister for Health Lyonpo Zangley Dukpa "informally" requested Nepal to support its bid for the role in a meeting with his Nepali counterpart Shakti Bahadur Basnet in Geneva, Switzerland on Monday, according to a diplomatic source.
They met on the sidelines of the World Health Assembly in Geneva. Nepal`s permanent mission to Geneva also implied the Bhutanese minister had requested support.
"He (Dukpa) also indicated that Bhutan was seeking Nepal`s support in its bid to be a member of the UN Security Council," the mission mentioned in a statement regarding the meeting.
Officials at Ministry of Foreign Affairs are expecting Bhutan to tender a formal request in this regard soon.
Currently, Japan and India are representing the Asia region in the 15-member UNSC that includes five veto-powered permanent members and two each from the UN`s five geographical regions. The UN General Assembly elects non-permanent members for two-year term. Nepal has served as a UNSC non-permanent member twice before. (*)
Editor: Ella Syafputri
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