Estonian flag raised at UN Security Council.
Photo: Estonian flag raised at UN Security Council. Author: Ministry of Foreign Affairs
An official ceremony was held in New York to raise the Estonian flag, alongside other elected members of the UN Security Council (UNSC), on Thursday to mark the start of country's term as Security Council member.
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Estonia's Permanent Representative to the UN Sven Jürgenson spoke at the ceremony and said a lot can be achieved at the UNSC to alleviate human suffering in the world and preserve the order based on international law.
Jürgenson said: "Estonia is contributing to ensuring that the UNSC discusses all the conflicts and crises that involve the violation of international law and human rights. It is particularly important to protect women and children that are caught in conflicts. We will also focus on topics and regions on which we have taken a leading role at the Security Council, such as the chairing of the Sudan and Iraq sanctions committees."
As an elected member of the UNSC, Estonia will attend all sessions, have the right to vote and will chair two sanctions committees. Estonia will also be able to present topics in the forms of discussions and briefings; for example, there are plans to raise awareness about international cyber norms and the application of existing international law in cyberspace. In 2020, Estonia will take over the rotating presidency of the Security Council in May.
Estonia is the elected member of the UN Security Council in 2020 and 2021.
The Security Council has 15 members, with five permanent and 10 elected members. Estonia will begin its membership at the UN Security Council in January 2020 with four new members: Niger, Tunisia, Vietnam, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
Estonia is a member with these four countries until the end of 2021. Belgium, Germany, the Dominican Republic, Indonesia, and South Africa will continue as non-permanent members in 2020 alongside five permanent members, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, and China.