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There are five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council: the three main Allied powers during World War II, plus France and China. Until 1971, China's seat was held by the exile Nationalist regime that took refuge on the island of Taiwan. Originally, there were five rotating members, but this was later expanded to ten. The terms of the rotating members last for two years, beginning each January 1. They are divided into two groups, with staggered terms. There is an established custom of apportioning membership according to region, with either one Asian or African country being from the Arab subgroup:
These regions are color-coded in the following table. Because of its relative small membership, the Security Council is the only official organ of the United Nations that can be expected to address serious conflicts in an effective way.
| Year | Permanent members | Rotating members | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | U.S. | U.K. | France | USSR | China | Colombia | Canada | Ethiopia | Malaysia | Finland | Cuba | Yemen | Ivory Coast | Zaire | Romania |
| 1991 | U.S. | U.K. | France | USSR | China | Ecuador | Austria | Zimbabwe | India | Belgium | " | " | " | " | " |
| 1992 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | " | " | " | " | " | Venezuela | Morocco | Cape Verde | Japan | Hungary |
| 1993 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | Brazil | New Zealand | Djibouti | Pakistan | Spain | " | " | " | " | " |
| 1994 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | " | " | " | " | " | Argentina | Oman | Nigeria | Rwanda | Czech Republic |
| 1995 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | Honduras | Germany | Botswana | Indonesia | Italy | " | " | " | " | " |
| 1996 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | " | " | " | " | " | Chile | Egypt | Guinea- Bissau | Rep. of Korea | Poland |
| 1997 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | Costa Rica | Portugal | Kenya | Japan | Sweden | " | " | " | " | " |
| 1998 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | " | " | " | " | " | Brazil | Bahrain | Gabon | Gambia | Slovenia |
| 1999 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | Argentina | Canada | Namibia | Malaysia | Nether- lands | " | " | " | " | " |
| 2000 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | " | " | " | " | " | Jamaica | Tunisia | Mali | Bangla- desh | Ukraine |
| 2001 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | Colombia | Ireland | Mauritius | Singapore | Norway | " | " | " | " | " |
| 2002 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | " | " | " | " | " | Mexico | Syria | Guinea | Camer- oon | Bulgaria |
| 2003 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | Chile | Germany | Angola | Pakistan | Spain | " | " | " | " | " |
| 2004 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | " | " | " | " | " | Brazil | Algeria | Benin | Philip- pines | Romania |
| 2005 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | Argentina | Greece | Tanzania | Japan | Denmark | " | " | " | " | " |
| 2006 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | " | " | " | " | " | Peru | Qatar | Congo | Ghana | Slovakia |
| 2007 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | Panama | Italy | South Africa | Indonesia | Belgium | " | " | " | " | " |
| 2008 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | " | " | " | " | " | Costa Rica | Libya | Burkina Faso | Viet Nam | Croatia |
| 2009 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | Mexico | Austria | Uganda | Japan | Turkey | " | " | " | " | " |
| 2010 | U.S. | U.K. | France | Russia | China | " | " | " | " | " | Brazil | Lebanon | Gabon | Nigeria | Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| KEY: | Euro-Western | Slavic | Asia | Latin America | Euro-Western | Africa | Asia / Pacific | West Europe | Lat. Am. / Carib. | Arab / Mideast | Africa | Asia / Africa |
East Europe | ||
SOURCE: United Nations
