UN Security Council welcomes five new members

Denmark, Greece, Pakistan, Panama and Somalia on Thursday began to assume responsibilities as non-permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.

Their two-year term officially started on Jan. 1. Thursday is the first working day of the council for 2025 after the Christmas and New Year break. The five countries replaced Ecuador, Japan, Malta, Mozambique and Switzerland. A flag installation ceremony was held at the United Nations headquarters in New York to mark the start of their responsibilities.

The ceremony was initiated by Kazakhstan in 2018. The permanent representatives of the five new members made short speeches before they installed their respective national flags outside the Security Council Chamber. The five newly elected countries will join Algeria, Guyana, the Republic of Korea, Sierra Leone, and Slovenia as non-permanent members of the Council.