RIYADH — Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan made a phone call on Saturday to his Emirati counterpart Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed to congratulate him on the UAE's election as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council. Prince Faisal affirmed his country's full support to the UAE, and called for "strengthening joint efforts between the two countries to serve the stability of the region and establish international peace and security." The UAE was among five nations elected on Friday by the UN General Assembly to sit as non-permanent members on the Security Council in 2022 and 2023. The others are Brazil, Albania, Gabon and Ghana. According to the final tally, Ghana received 185 votes, Gabon 183, UAE 179, Albania 175 and Brazil 181 votes. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) garnered three votes while Peru and Iran each collected one. The Security Council is a body of 15 members, five of which are permanent and have veto power: the United States, United Kingdom, France, Russia and China. The newly elected five will join India, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico and Norway, the other non-permanent members. Prior to its successful bid, the UAE issued a statement promising to be "a constructive partner" in addressing some of the "critical challenges of our time", including promoting gender equality, countering terrorism and extremism and "harnessing the potential of innovation for peace". Vacating their seats were Viet Nam, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Estonia, Niger and Tunisia. The candidates ran mostly unopposed within their regions, except for Gabon and Ghana, which were challenged by the DRC for the two available seats in the African Group.
