Yoon hails S. Korea’s election as UNSC member as ‘victory of global diplomacy’

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday hailed South Korea’s election as a nonpermanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) as a “victory of global diplomacy,” his spokesperson said.

South Korea won the seat after garnering 180 votes from 192 member states at the U.N. General Assembly in New York on Tuesday.

“Our entry as a nonpermanent member with the consent of 180 nations out of 192 U.N. member states is a victory of global diplomacy,” Yoon said, according to presidential spokesperson Lee Do-woon.

South Korea will serve a two-year term from 2024-25, its third time on the council as one of 10 nonpermanent members.

The presidential office said the Yoon administration will meet the expectations of countries around the world, and fulfill a diplomacy of values and responsibility.

“This is an outcome that confirmed that President Yoon Suk Yeol’s diplomacy, which seeks to realize a global pivotal state through solidarity with nations sharing the universal values of freedom and human rights, is winning the wide sympathy and support of the international community,” senior presidential secretary for press affairs Kim Eun-hye said.

Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo told reporters South Korea’s membership will allow it to lead the council’s response to North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats.

He also noted next year will be the first time since 1997 that South Korea, the U.S. and Japan will all serve as UNSC members, presenting an opportunity for stronger cooperation between the three countries and the council.