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Eight countries, including Iran, Sudan and Venezuela, have lost their right to vote at the UN due to excessive debt to the organization, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said today.
A total of 11 member states are currently late in paying their contributions in accordance with Article 19 of the UN Charter, Guterres said in a letter to members of the General Assembly.
Article 19 provides for the suspension of the right to vote in the General Assembly for any country whose arrears are equal to or greater than the contributions it has paid in the last two years. “If the non-payment has occurred ‘due to out-of-control circumstances’, the state can still retain its right to vote, which is the case this year for three countries – Comoros, Sao Tome and Principe and Somalia,” Guterres said. .
In addition to Iran, Sudan and Venezuela, five other countries lost their rights – Antigua and Barbuda, Congo, Guinea, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu. In order for these countries to regain the right to vote, it is necessary to pay at least a minimum amount that is not the same for all countries. Iran has to pay more than $ 18 million, Sudan about $ 300,000 and Venezuela nearly $ 40 million.
Iran lost its right to vote last year because of debt. The Iranian authorities later stated that they could not pay the amount due to the sanctions imposed on it by the United States. After months of negotiations, Iran was granted an exemption, which allowed it to pay off the required minimum debt and regain its voting rights in June, shortly before the election of new members of the UN Security Council.
The UN’s annual operating budget, approved in December, is about $ 3 billion. The peacekeeping budget, approved in June, is about $ 6.5 billion.
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