LOOK BACK: The Philippines’ long history with the UN Security Council

The Philippines may not have secured a seat in the United Nations Security Council for the 2027-2028 term, but the country has had a vibrant history with the body, having served as a non-permanent member a total of four times.  

The first time the Philippines became a member of the Security Council was in 1957. Carlos P. Romulo, who had served as President of the UN General Assembly in 1949, was the country’s first representative to the Council. He took up the role again from 1980 to 1981 when the Philippines won its third term as a non-permanent member.  

Romulo was President of the Security Council—a position that rotates among the members monthly—four times during his tenure. In a 1982 interview, he described the importance of the role: “[It’s] necessary to get the meeting of minds of the delegates to the Security Council before any decision is made. And I think that’s the duty of the President, to get them together on every issue that is of importance.” 

Among the matters Romulo tackled during his terms as President were territorial disputes in South Asia and the Middle East, and deliberations of countries’ applications for UN membership. 

Four other Filipinos have served as President of the Security Council: Jacinto Castel Borja, who represented the Philippines during its second term in the Security Council in 1963; Lauro L. Baja, Jr., who took on the role twice during the country’s fourth term from 2004 to 2005; and Delia Albert and Bayani Mercado, who each held presidency of the Council for one month, also during the Philippines’ fourth time to sit in the body.  

Notably, during Baja’s two rounds as Security Council President, he led deliberations and managed peacekeeping efforts in Haiti following an uprising against the sitting government ins 2004. Baja provided strategic direction to the Council on the deployment of the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti and personally led a Security Council mission to the country in 2005 for a firsthand evaluation of the peace and security situation. 

Elections for five of the 10 non-permanent members of the Security Council are held every year, with seats distributed across the five United Nations regional groups (African, Asia-Pacific, Eastern European, Latin American and Caribbean, and Western European and others). The Council also has five permanent members: China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States.