Eight countries lose their voting right in UN

Iran, Venezuela, Sudan, Antigua and Barbuda, Congo, Guinea, Papua New Guinea, and Vanuatu have lost their voting rights in the UN due to unpaid dues, UN secretary general Antonio Guterres said on Tuesday.

In total, 11 foreign states are behind in their payments, of which eight have lost their right to vote in the UN assembly so far.

According to the UN charter, if a member’s arrears equal or exceed the amount that should have been paid over the preceding two full years, the member loses its voting rights.

One of the eight countries which has lost its voting right, Venezuela, is one of a few countries which has recognized Georgia’s two Russian-occupied regions as independent states.