Turkey elected member to UN's FAO Council

Turkey was elected on Friday as the council member of the United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) which is based in Italian capital Rome. At the second round of the elections of the 38th General Conference of the FAO, Turkey won membership to FAO Council for the period of July 2013 - July 2016 with 115 votes out of 116. Russia was elected at the first round with 142 votes out of 162 while Turkey and Hungary were elected at the second round surpassing the votes for the Greek Cypriot administration. Turkish Embassy in Rome issued a statement that Turkey was entitled to membership to the FAO Council thanks to the support of Latin American, African, Middle Eastern and Asian countries as well as some EU countries. "FAO elections affirmed the international trust in Turkey," the statement said, stressing that the membership is a result of the intense lobbying in Rome and multilateral diplomacy of Turkey along with its international role and efforts in food safety, sustainable development, agriculture, prevention of famine and rural development. Prior to its new membership to UN's FAO Council, Turkey served as a non-permanent member in another key UN body, the Security Council (UNSC), between 2009-2010 and renewed its aspirations in 2011 for the post for 2015-2016.