The United Nations has appointed Malta as a new non-permanent member of its security council.
In a Tweet, Prime Minister Robert Abela said that he was honoured to see Malta elected with a strong vote. "Serving on the Council of the UN provides Malta a significant opportunity to contribute to the maintenance of global peace and security," Abela said.
Malta received 97.3% of the votes, Foreign Affairs Minister Ian Borg posted on Facebook, calling it a "historic day for our country." Malta received 185 votes from 190 nations. There were two abstentions and no invalid votes. 127 votes were required.
The other countries elected were Mozambique, Japan, Ecuador, Switzerland.
It is only the second time that Malta was elected as a member of the Security Council, having been on the council between 1983 and 1984.
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, and approving any changes to the UN Charter. Its powers include establishing peacekeeping operations, enacting international sanctions, and authorizing military action. The UNSC is the only UN body with the authority to issue binding resolutions on member states.
Each year the General Assembly elects five non-permanent members (out of 10 in total) for a two-year term. The 10 non-permanent seats are distributed on a regional basis as follows: five for African and Asian States; one for Eastern European States; two for the Latin American and Caribbean States; and two for Western European and other States.
Minister Ian Borg was in New York and held a number of meetings prior to the announcement.
"Malta will continue to work to promote ongoing dialogue and strengthening human rights on the United Nations Security Council," he had said in a meeting with the Secretary-General of the United Nations António Guterres prior to Malta's election.
Minister Borg had explained that Malta believes in the importance of a multilateral fora such as the United Nations, in multilateralism, and also in the charter of the same United Nations.
From his end Secretary-General Guterres said that "Malta is a country with an exemplary relationship with the United Nations and I look forward to strengthening our cooperation."