Flag-planting ceremony for new UN Security Council members. UN Security Council composition updated UN
On Thursday, a flag-planting ceremony for the five new Security Council member states elected for 2025-2026 took place at UN headquarters: Denmark, Greece, Pakistan, Panama, and Somalia.
The official ceremony is a relatively new tradition, introduced in 2018 at the initiative of Kazakhstan. Before that, the flags of the non-permanent members of the Council were routinely displayed and changed by the Protocol Service.
The UN Security Council, as a reminder, consists of fifteen members. The United Kingdom, the People’s Republic of China, France, the Russian Federation, and the United States of America are permanent members of the Council and have veto power, meaning they can block any decision. Ten non-permanent members are elected by the General Assembly for two years, five annually. On January 1, the presidency of the UN Security Council was transferred to Algeria on a rotational basis.
The Security Council has primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security and plays a leading role in determining whether there is a threat to peace or an act of aggression. In some cases, the Security Council may resort to sanctions or even authorize the use of force to maintain or restore international peace and security.