Kuwait is set to begin its membership at the UN Security Council (UNSC) beginning January 1, 2018, after a 40-year hiatus, amidst many regional and global challenges, said a report.

The tiny Gulf nation will have a two-year membership at the council and will succeed Egypt in representing the Arab Group in the UN, reported Kuwait News Agency (Kuna).

"Kuwait will continue being neutral in resolving different issues. It would fully co-operate with UNSC's member states to peacefully end conflicts and wars," Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al Hamad Al Sabah, Kuwait's Deputy Premier and Minister of Foreign Affairs, was quoted as saying in the report.

Around 188 out of 193 UN General Secretariat Member States voted for Kuwait's membership, which shows that the country had gained the trust of the international community, stated Kuna citing Kuwait's permanent envoy to the UN Ambassador Mansour Al Otaibi.

"Kuwait's top priorities are to prevent conflicts before they occur, mediation in terms of the UN's articles and reforming the UN General Secretariat and the UNSC," he added.

Al Otaibi also called for increasing the number of the council's member states, adding that Arab countries are demanding a permanent Arab seat at the Council.