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Latam pair in battle for UN seat Deadlock in Latin America UN race
(about 14 hours later)
Venezuela will stand against Guatemala in a hotly contested election for a seat on the prestigious United Nations Security Council on Monday. The first round of a struggle for Latin America's United Nations Security Council seat has ended in a stand-off.
With Iran, Darfur and North Korea on the agenda of the Council in the coming months, victory means the ability to influence key decisions. Guatemala won 109 votes from UN members to Venezuela's 76, but neither country gained enough votes to win a seat on the 15-member body.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, a sharp critic of the US, has been touring countries to rally support. The US has strongly backed Guatemala, fearing that Venezuela would use the seat as a platform to denounce the US.
Regional seats, which are rotated every two years, also went to Indonesia, South Africa, Italy and Belgium.
Mexican standoff?
With Iran, Darfur and North Korea on the agenda of the council in the coming months, a position on the Security Council gives some influence over key decisions.
The BBC's UN correspondent Laura Trevelyan says the race between Venezuela and Guatemala has been the most dramatic since Cuba ran against Colombia in 1979, at the height of the Cold War.
That battle took three months of voting to resolve, with Mexico eventually winning as the compromise candidate.
A candidate must win at least 124 votes, or two-thirds of all those cast, to earn its place on the Security Council.
Venezuela and Guatemala will now proceed to a run-off vote, which is likely to mean further lobbying on council members.
Lobby politics
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, a sharp critic of the US, has already toured countries to rally support for his country's candidacy.
The US has been working behind the scenes to lobby support for Guatemala.The US has been working behind the scenes to lobby support for Guatemala.
UN officials say there has not been an election like it since Cuba ran against Colombia in 1979 during the Cold War years.
Western diplomats fear that if Venezuela wins a temporary seat on the Security Council, then the country will use it as a platform to denounce the Americans at every turn and it will be impossible to get any work done.
Mexican scenario?
There is no love lost between Hugo Chavez and the US.
The Venezuelan president denounced George W Bush as "the devil" at the UN last month.The Venezuelan president denounced George W Bush as "the devil" at the UN last month.
But it is uncertain whether that performance will help or hinder Venezuela's chances against Guatemala. But it is uncertain whether that performance helped or hindered Venezuela's chances.
Guatemala, backed heavily by the US, says it will be a constructive member of the Council. Guatemala says it will be a constructive member of the council, but the overt US lobbying could prove counter-productive.
But the overt US lobbying for Guatemala could prove counter-productive too. Western diplomats fear that if Venezuela wins a temporary seat on the Security Council, it will use the post as a platform for anti-US rhetoric, making it impossible to get any work done.
The decision lies with the 192 members of the UN General Assembly. Five of the UN Security Council seats are held permanently by China, the US, Russia, the UK and France.
The winning country must get two-thirds of the votes cast in a secret ballot. Cuba-against-Colombia took three months of voting to resolve. The others are held by regional blocs from Africa, Latin America, Asia, Western Europe and Eastern Europe.
Mexico eventually won as the compromise candidate.