Claim: “Liberia lost its bid for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2025-2026 term,” a local newspaper has reported.
Verdict: Misleading. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs says the country is campaigning for the 2026-2027 seat, not the 2025-2026 one.
Full Text
Liberia has declared its interest in becoming a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).
President Joseph Boakai called the international community, urging the United Nations member nations to support Liberia’s candidacy.
The UNSC is one of the six main organs of the United Nations, primarily responsible for maintaining international peace and security.
The council consists of 15 members. Liberia aspires to be a part of ten non-permanent members of the Security Council.
There is a regular distribution of seats among regions: one seat for the African Group, one for the Asia-Pacific Group, one for the Latin American and Caribbean Group, and two for the Western European and Others Group.
In its October 14, 2024 publication with the caption,
“Liberia’s UNSC Dreams Crash,” the Independent Probe Newspaper said Liberia has lost its bid for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2025-2026 term.
A portion of the newspaper is quoted as: “Last Thursday, October 10, 2024, Liberia lost its bid for a seat on the UN Security Council after the UN General Assembly elected five non-permanent members for the 2025-2026 term: Somalia, Pakistan, Panama, Greece, and Denmark.”
DUBAWA verified the claim to ascertain the authenticity of the published information.
Verification
In June this year, the General Assembly of the United Nations (UNGA) elected five new members of the UNSC for 2025-2026.
Denmark, Greece, Pakistan, Panama, and Somalia are the five member states. The UN said in its publication that all the regional groups are running “uncontested elections this year, known as a clean slate.”
The Liberian government, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, described the publication as misleading and inaccurate. Media reports circulate that Liberia has lost its bid for a non-permanent seat at the UNSC.
“Our campaign is for the 2026-2027 seat, not the 2025-2026 seat,” the ministry said.
In a press statement from the Executive Mansion in 2023, a component of which the newspaper quoted in its report, former President George Weah announced the endorsement of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for Liberia’s quest for a non-permanent seat on the UNSC.
The quote reads, “The President sought the bloc’s unflinching support for a Non-Permanent Member of the United Nations Security Council to represent the Western Africa Region for 2026-2027.
Conclusion
Liberia is campaigning for the 2026-2027 seat rather than the 2025-2026 seat. Therefore, the Independent Probe Newspaper’s October 14 publication that Liberia has lost its bid for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council is misleading.
