Turkey risks not being represented in Security Council voting

Turkey has declared its candidacy non-permanent membership to the U.N. Security Council after nearly 50 years and will compete with Austria and Iceland for the two Western European and other group (WEOG) seats for the 2009-2010 term.

Ilkin, born in Oct. 3, 1943, will reach Turkey's official retirement age limit of 65-years for government service ahead of the voting scheduled either on October 7 or 14.

Even as the replacement of Ilkin with current Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ertugrul Apakan is widely spoken in the capital Ankara, the intense agenda and ongoing turmoil in Turkey's politics blocks this appointment.

Ankara is moving through a tense period due to the closure case filed against Turkey's ruling AKP. The file is standing before the Constitutional Court; however no time has been announced for when a decision could be handed down.

Turkey's top prosecutor filed a lawsuit against the ruling AKP in March claiming the party has become "the focal point" of the anti-secular activities in the country.

The Foreign Ministry is working on new formulas to solve the bottleneck regarding the issue. One possible solution being voiced is to promote Ilkin as a "coordinator" to the same role through a special government decree.