Serbian Ambassador to the UN Feodor Starcevic said Wednesday it is a good thing the 5 newly appointed Security Council (SC) members do not recognize Kosovo, adding that the situation was similar even before the rotation.

"Serbia continues to advocate its view towards Kosovo at SC meetings the same way as before. Of course, it is a good thing the new SC members have not recognized Kosovo, but it was the same with the countries set to leave the SC, with the exception of Gabon, which recognized Kosovo a short while ago, but with which Serbia has kept good relations," Starcevic noted.

According to him, it is good for Serbia that more countries that have not recognized Kosovo are joining the SC, because their views are based on the principle not to accept unilateral declarations of independence as a way to create new nations. The view of those countries is particularly important when adopting a SC decision that is not worth a veto by one or more of the permanent members, or is politically detrimental, the ambassador explained.

The UN General Assembly elected Azerbaijan, Guatemala, Morocco, Pakistan and Togo as the new SC members from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2013. None of these countries recognize Kosovo. They will replace Bosnia-Herzegovina, Brazil, Gabon, Lebanon and Nigeria. India and South Africa also do not recognize Kosovo.

Their term will end at the end of 2012. German, Portugal and Columbia, on the other hand, have recognized Kosovo's independence. They will also leave the SC at the end of next year. When it comes to the permanent members, the U.S., UK and France recognize Kosovo, while Russia and China do not.