U.N. Security Council (file photo)Bosnia, Brazil, Gabon, Lebanon and Nigeria were elected Thursday tonon-permanent seats on the U.N. Security Council. They will servetwo-year terms starting January 1 and will participate in decisionsranging from deploying U.N. peacekeepers to imposing sanctions.

Thisyear's vote lacked the suspense of some previous elections, because allfive candidates were unopposed and succeeded in getting the two-thirdsmajority required in the first round of secret ballots.

Ten ofthe council's 15-seats are filled by regional representatives fortwo-year terms. The other five seats are permanent ones held byveto-wielding members Britain, China, France, Russia and the UnitedStates.

British Ambassador John Sawers said the additions to the council will make it even stronger.

"Wehave two large countries in Brazil and Nigeria who carry the weight ofbeing a regional power," he said. "We have two countries in Lebanon andBosnia who have been through conflict and can bring their own nationalexperiences to the Security Council."

Lebanon and Bosnia and Herzegovina, are in the unusual position of also being on the council's agenda.

Bosniais a multiethnic country still recovering from the war that accompaniedthe break-up of Yugoslavia. It has experienced internal divisions andrising tensions in the past year, as major political parties struggleto agree on a basic political structure.

Bosnian ForeignMinister Sven Alkalaj said the current political crisis would notadversely impact its role on the council or prevent it from takingcommon positions.

"The situation in Bosnia is going to bestable, it is now stable. What is happening now is some politicalcrisis that happens elsewhere in world," he said.

Lebanonhas one of the largest U.N. peacekeeping forces in the south of itscountry. It is also the subject of a U.N.-backed tribunal which isconsidering indictments in the 2005 assassination of former PrimeMinister Rafiq Hariri. Internal divisions have prevented the formationof a new government following June elections.

One councildiplomat said Lebanon could prove to be something of a wild card onMiddle East issues - particularly Iran's nuclear ambitions. He notedthat if the Iranian dossier comes back to the council for possiblesanctions, Lebanon, which will likely have members of Iranian-backedHezbollah's political wing in its next government, could have aconflict of interest and choose to abstain from voting.

Meanwhile,Brazil joins the council for the 10th time. It is a founding member ofthe United Nations and was part of the first group elected to theSecurity Council in 1946.

Nigeria has served three timesbefore. Foreign Minister Ojo Maduekwe said his country would work toprevent crises and conflicts, deal with human rights issues andgenerally promote international solidarity.

"We intend thatworking with all the other members of the U.N. Security Council," hesaid. "Our preventive diplomacy will be central to our approach to alot of issues."

Nominations for non-permanent seats are notrequired, countries simply announce their intention to run.Consideration is given to an equitable geographical distribution and acandidate's contribution to the maintenance of international peace andsecurity.

The five new members are replacing out-going councilmembers Burkina Faso, Costa Rica, Croatia, Libya and Vietnam. Inaddition to the five permanent council members, they will join Austria,Mexico, Japan, Turkey and Uganda on the 15-member council.