Bono and Leo kick off our bid to win UN Council seat

A U2 performance at Madison Square Garden last night kicked off Ireland’s charm offensive in our attempt to win a seat on the UN Security Council.

Bono, the Edge and Co. threw their weight behind the move by inviting all the United Nations ambassadors to the New York date on their ‘Experience + Innocence’ tour.

Leo Varadkar and Simon Coveney flew in yesterday morning ahead of a number of events aimed at securing our first seat on the council since 2002.

Later this evening, the Taoiseach will travel to the UN headquarters in Manhattan for an event celebrating Irish culture that will be attended by Bono and former president Mary Robinson. Over 400 UN diplomats and other guests have been invited to attend the reception on the UN’s North Lawn, beside the ‘Arrival’ sculpture, by Irish artist John Behan, which was given as a gift to the UN by Ireland in 2000.

‘Ireland’s campaign for a seat on the UN Security Council is central to our international agenda, and is driven by our belief that we are far stronger acting together than we are acting alone,’ Mr Varadkar said yesterday.

If the bid is successful, this country will have a place on the council in 2021 and 2022. Today, the Taoiseach will take part in a ceremony marking 60 years of Irish involvement in UN peacekeeping missions, and will pay tribute to the 88 members of the Defence Forces who gave their lives while serving their country.

Our bid for a seat on the Council is part of the Global Ireland 2025 strategy, which aims to double the scale and impact of Ireland’s international presence.

Canada and Norway are also challenging for the two available seats on the Council.

‘We will have a tough campaign on our hands over the next two years and we certainly don’t underestimate our competition, but I am confident that by putting our full support behind the campaign and by emphasising Ireland’s unique strengths and track record we can succeed,’ the Taoiseach said.

The Security Council consists of five permanent members – China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States – and ten non-permanent members elected by the General Assembly for a term of two years.

The successful country has to win at least two-thirds of all votes cast for a seat.

However, this can end in deadlock if there are two roughly evenly matched candidates. In that case the voting goes again until there is a winner.