German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas rejected on Wednesday criticism of Berlin's decision to compete against Israel for a seat on the U.N. Security Council in 2019 and 2020, saying it was normal for a number of countries to seek representation.
The Security Council is considered the U.N.'s most powerful body, charged with maintaining international peace and security, as well as accepting new members to the United Nations.
The Security Council consists of 15 members, five of whom – the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France – are permanent members and have veto power over its resolutions. Ten rotating members are elected by the General Assembly for two-year terms based on regions: five from African and Asian countries; one from Eastern European countries; two from Latin American and Caribbean countries; and two from Western European and other countries – the bloc to which Israel belongs.
The Security Council presidency rotates monthly among its members.
Israel is the only country in the Middle East that has never sat on the Security Council. Only 66 other countries in the U.N., many of them small island states, have not held a Security Council seat.
Germany last held a non-permanent seat in 2011-2012 and is vying with Israel and Belgium for one of the two seats to be filled in 2019-2020.
Maas told reporters before his first United Nations visit as foreign minister that Germany's candidacy had been announced long ago, and did not diminish its strong support for Israel.
"We are not running against anyone; we are running for a seat," he said, following the criticism from Washington's nominee as U.S. ambassador to Berlin and others. "That is a topic that one can deal with very normally."
Richard Grenell, whose nomination is held up in the Senate, said earlier this month that the United States had brokered a deal in the 1990s with countries in the U.N.'s Western European and Others Group to allow Israel to run uncontested for a seat.
Grenell, the U.S. spokesman at the U.N. from 2001 to 2009, tweeted about the issue on March 14, saying, "Israel has waited 19 years! The U.S. must demand that Europe keep its word."
German diplomats deny any such agreement was made. The Israeli mission to the U.N. declined to comment on Grenell's tweet.
Conservative and pro-Israeli groups in the United States have also criticized Germany's decision to run for the seat at the same time as Israel.
Maas said Germany was well-placed to serve on the Council since it was the second largest provider of both funds and troops for the U.N. and played a big role in humanitarian and stabilization missions, as well as on climate change.
Security Council candidates must win more than two-thirds of the overall vote by the 193-member General Assembly to be elected. The election for the term beginning on Jan. 1, 2019 is due to be held in June.
Regional groups generally agree upon the candidates to put forward and competitive races for seats are increasingly rare.
Last week, Arab League chief Ahmed Abul Gheit said that Arab League nations will meet in Riyadh on April 15 to work to prevent Israel from gaining a seat on the U.N. Security Council.
