Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said on Tuesday his country’s election to the United Nations Security Council is a historic event.
Azerbaijan was elected a nonpermanent member of the UN Security Council on Monday.
“This is a great victory indeed. The UN Security Council is the most authoritative structure in the world and Azerbaijan as an independent state is now a member of this structure,” Aliyev said.
He expressed gratitude to “all countries that put their trust in us, rely on us and have shown great respect for us.”
Azerbaijan was awarded the seat after Slovenia dropped its bid.
Four countries were elected last week to join the Security Council in January as non-permanent members for two-year terms: Pakistan, Guatemala, Morocco and Togo.
They will join the UNSC’s five permanent members -- China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States, plus five countries elected to non-permanent membership last year: Colombia, Germany, India, Portugal and South Africa.
