RP WON 2-YEAR SEAT IN UNITED NAITONS SECURITY COUNCIL

MANILA, OCTOBER 25, 2003  (STAR) By Marvin Sy  - The election of the Philippines to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is a source of national pride and will put the country in a strong position to contribute to world peace, President Arroyo said yesterday.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas Ople, for his part, believes the country is prepared to face the challenges of being a member of the council and ready to fulfill the mandate given by the members of the UN.

Along with Algeria, Brazil, Romania and Benin, the Philippines won a two-year seat in the council on Thursday. All five candidates were unopposed and won the support of more than 170 nations in voting by the 191-member General Assembly.

The five new members will join the council in January, replacing Bulgaria, Cameroon, Guinea, Mexico and Syria.

"This shows the support, respect and prestige we have gained in the international community," the President said in a statement. "Our seat in the UN Security Council, combined with our earlier designation as a major non-NATO ally by the United States, puts our country in a vantage position to contribute to world peace and achieve enduring peace in our own shores."

Mrs. Arroyo pledged to continue fighting terrorism and poverty and to work with other nations in promoting multilateral peacekeeping and the rule of law.

Ople said in a statement that the election of the Philippines to the council is "a badge of honor" that vindicates Mrs. Arroyo’s leadership.

This will be the fourth time the Philippines will be in the council. The country was an active member of the UNSC in 1957, 1963 and 1980.

Ople said one of the primary tasks of the Philippines as a member of the council is to help heal the divisions brought about by the US-led war on Iraq and the subsequent turnover of its government to the Iraqi people.

He explained that while important steps have already been taken on this issue, "we must also exert every effort to help strengthen multilateralism and the rule of law."

The foreign affairs chief added that consensus building and consultation with other council members and concerned parties will characterize the Philippines’ term in the UNSC.

"We intend to help in building consensus on issues before the council," Ople said. "We intend to work very closely with all the members of the council and to consult and dialogue with all parties concerned on particular issues."

The Philippines has started political consultations with other countries on issues that are likely to be tackled by the council, he said.

Ople said he anticipates that, for the first time in many years, a number of issues relating to Asia might also be on the council’s agenda.

"The situation in the Korean peninsula, if not resolved by countries in the region, could possibly go before the council. The tensions in south Asia, aside from the issue of Kashmir, could also find itself on our agenda… Other potential conflicts in Asia, particularly those involving territorial and maritime disputes might also be brought to the council," he said.

Ople noted that there is a chance that the issue concerning Iran, if not completely addressed within the context of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), may be brought before the council.

"In many instances, these issues have a decidedly nuclear dimension," he said.

This makes the work of the council to address the issue of weapons of mass destruction of increasing importance, the foreign affairs chief said.

"These situations, in addition to the clear need to prevent terrorists from having access to weapons of mass destruction, makes the work of the council even more vital in maintaining peace. We intend to do our part," Ople said.

Another priority of the Philippines as a member of the council is the war on terrorism.

"We intend to bring to the council the zeal, determination and commitment that we showed in our own national and regional fight against terror," he said.

Ople promised that the Philippines will work closely with other members of the council in carrying out the work of the Counter-Terrorism Council (CTC).

The CTC, made up of all 15 members of the UN Security Council, was created several days after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the US through Resolution 1373, which condemned the attacks and expressed the UN’s determination to prevent all such acts.

The CTC monitors the implementation of the resolution by all countries and tries to increase the capability of each country to fight terrorism.

"In all our action as a member of the Security Council, we will also be guided by our national interests. These interests coincide with the common desire of all nations to maintain peace and stability, prevent conflict, and promote the rule of law," Ople said.

The council’s agenda is mainly governed by global events, though members can choose to focus on specific issues when they hold the council presidency, which rotates monthly.

The Philippines’ UN Ambassador Lauro Baja said his country will likely promote international efforts to tackle collective security and promote the rule of law.

But there are two issues the Philippines hopes won’t make it to the Security Council — the nuclear problems in Iran and North Korea, he said.

"We are hoping that diplomacy will work before these issues come to the Security Council," Baja said.

While the Philippines gets significant aid and military assistance from the US and may have been expected to closely follow US voting, council diplomats said they expected the country often to go its own way.

Only the five permanent members of the 15-member council — the US, Britain, Russia, China and France — have veto power, enabling them to block resolutions.

The 10 elected council members are nominated by regional groups to give the council broad geographical representation.

The newly elected members will join five countries elected last September — Angola, Chile, Germany, Pakistan and Spain — who will remain on the council until the end of 2004.

Problems Ahead

The five newly elected members of the UN Security Council reflect many problems on the global agenda. They join the council amid growing debate at the UN about the role of the council and whether the number of permanent members should be expanded in order to provide wider geographic representation.

Algeria is fighting an Islamic insurgency. So is the Philippines, which is also waging a war against al-Qaeda-linked militant extremist groups. Benin is one of the world’s poorest countries, sandwiched in a region of conflict and instability.

Less than 15 years after overthrowing its communist dictator, Romania is still struggling to build democratic institutions and a viable economy. Despite having South America’s largest economy, Brazil is also struggling to create jobs for millions of unemployed and lift the country’s impoverished masses from misery.

In recent years, the Security Council has spent about 60 percent of its time dealing with wars and other crises in Africa, though this year the debate over the US-led war on Iraq and its aftermath may have topped African issues. Iraq will undoubtedly remain an important issue next year as will the global fight against terrorism.

Brazil’s Ambassador Ronaldo Sardenberg said joining the council is "a great opportunity and also a great challenge" because the deep divisions over Iraq need to be overcome so members can effectively deal with threats to international peace and security.

While critics questioned whether the UN still had a role to play after the debacle over Iraq, Benin’s UN Ambassador Joel Adechi said Secretary General Kofi Annan’s keynote address at the donors conference now underway in Madrid, Spain to raise money for Iraq’s reconstruction "is a good sign the UN is still relevant."

"When you are talking of restoring democracy, restoring the rule of law in Iraq, the best tool that you can use is still the UN," he said.

Diplomats said the five permanent members will meet later Thursday to discuss the faltering Middle East "road map" peace plan as well as initial steps toward a resolution on the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

US President George W. Bush, in his address to the general assembly last month, said he wanted the council to pass a non-proliferation resolution. Council decisions are legally binding on the UN’s 191 member nations.

Algeria’s UN Ambassador Abdallah Baali said for his country, "There is one issue of paramount importance, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," where the council has been "absent and ineffective."

The US has vetoed several recent resolutions, claiming they targeted Israel and weren’t balanced.

Algeria also wants the council to focus even more on Africa. So does Brazil.

"We need to continue to do peace-building and nation-building," Sardenberg said. "It’s very important not to leave Africa alone at this time, not only politically but economically.’

Benin’s Adechi said there is "a very difficult situation" in the region surrounding his country in which issues of conflict, good governance, the rule of law, small arms proliferation and child soldiers need to be addressed.

"But also the linkage between peace and security and development, because in Africa since the end of the Cold War, underdevelopment, or lack of development, is also a cause of conflict now," he said.

Some years, there are hotly contested battles for seats, but not this year. The only drama took place behind the scenes earlier this year.

The US succeeded in scuttling a bid by Libya in July to get the Arab seat, working with friendly West African nations to support Algeria instead, according to a US official. Libya is still under US sanctions.

"What I can say is that Libya decided to withdraw and we were next on the list in terms of rotation of the North African countries," said Algeria’s Baali. "We made an exchange so that Libya in 2008 can apply to the Security Council."

One major shift will be in the council’s lone Arab voice from Syria to Algeria.

"It’s difficult to know how that change will play itself out," one council diplomat said. "But Algeria is a very serious country and it will be interesting to have north Africa with such strong representation." — With AP