Published: 03.06.2025.
Updated: 23.01.2026.
Updated: 23.01.2026.
On 1 January 2026, Latvia began its work on the United Nations Security Council.
The United Nations Security Council is the UN body responsible for international peace and security. It consists of five permanent member states (the United Kingdom, the United States, France, Russia, and China) and ten elected member states for a two-year term. Decisions of the UN Security Council are binding for all UN Member States.
In 2026, Latvia will serve on the UN Security Council alongside the five permanent members—the United States, the United Kingdom, China, France, and Russia—and nine elected non-permanent members: Denmark, Greece, Panama, Colombia, Bahrain, Pakistan, Liberia, Somalia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
In November, Latvia will hold the Presidency of the UN Security Council. This will give Latvia the mandate to set the Council’s agenda and to advance issues of importance to Latvia in line with its priorities in the Security Council.
Latvia will work in the UN Security Council to help achieve a just and sustainable peace in Ukraine, the Middle East, and other conflict regions; to strengthen global security; to protect the rules-based international order in accordance with the UN Charter; and to improve the effectiveness of the UN Security Council’s work.
Latvia’s priority areas for its work in the UN Security Council are:
- Protecting the rules-based international order in accordance with the UN Charter, including efforts to achieve a just and lasting peace in Ukraine; continuing to highlight Russia’s crimes, counter the aggressor’s disinformation, and ensure accountability for crimes committed;
- Promoting gender equality, advocating for the prevention of sexual violence in armed conflict, and implementing the “Women, Peace and Security” agenda;
- Identifying solutions to current security challenges (hybrid threats, cyberattacks, security risks related to artificial intelligence, disinformation, etc.).
Latvia’s horizontal priority is the improvement of the UN Security Council’s working methods, with the aim of enhancing the Council’s effectiveness, efficiency, transparency and accountability.
On 3 June 2025, with broad support from UN Member States, Latvia was elected to the UN Security Council for the first time in its history (2026–2027). Election to the Security Council required the support of two-thirds of UN Member States, i.e. 129 out of 193 votes. Latvia received 178 votes from the 188 UN Member States that participated in the vote (10 states abstained).
Latvia’s membership of the UN Security Council has been one of the long-term objectives of Latvia’s foreign policy. Latvia put forward its candidacy for the UN Security Council in 2011.
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Publications
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- Author: Kaspars Ģērmanis, Center for Geopolitical Studies Riga, June 2025.
- This publication reviews three decades of Latvia’s membership in the United Nations (UN), during which Latvia has gradually matured and transformed from an aid recipient to a contributor within the organization and beyond.
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Authors: Gunda Reire, Aija Lulle, Ance Baura, Markuss Kozlinskis.
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Publisher: Center for International Studies, Latvia; October 2024.
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- Authors: Kaspars Ģērmanis and Māris Andžāns, Center for Geopolitical Studies Riga, May 2024.
- This report is meant to explore political, economic and people-to-people relations between Latvia and African countries.
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- Authors: Kaspars Ģērmanis and Māris Andžāns, Center for Geopolitical Studies Riga, May 2024.
- This report is meant to explore political, economic and people-to-people relations between Latvia and African countries.
- Address by Ambassador Andrejs Pildegovičs at the Scoping Meeting of the International Panel on Climate Change April 16, 2024, Riga, Latvia
- Publication by Ambassador at Large for Global and Multilateral Affairs - Special Envoy for Latvia’s UNSC Candidacy 2026–2027 at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia Andrejs Pildegovičs “TOGETHER FOR PEACE AND RESILIENCE: LATVIA’S CANDIDACY FOR THE 2025 UN SECURITY COUNCIL ELECTIONS” in Latvian Foreign and Security Policy Yearbook 2024 (pages 125-135).