DR Congo, Colombia, Latvia among new UN Security Council members

UN General Assembly elects five new non-permanent members of the UN Security Council. [Photo: UN]

The UN General Assembly on Tuesday elected five countries -- Bahrain, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Latvia and Liberia -- to serve as non-permanent Security Council members for the 2026-2027 term.

 The Security Council, the international peace and security body of the United Nations, is comprised of 15 countries: permanent members Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States, which each hold veto power; and 10 nations elected for staggered two-year terms.

 Countries are elected by secret ballot, with seats allocated by regional groupings. The five nations elected on Tuesday ran unopposed.

 They will replace outgoing members Algeria, Guyana, Sierra Leone, Slovenia and South Korea on January 1, 2026, and join the other five non-permanent members on the council: Denmark, Greece, Pakistan, Panama and Somalia.