According to the UN charter, the Security Council has 15 members: 5 permanent and 10 that are elected by the General Assembly for two-year terms. The permanent members are China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The 10 temporary slots are elected annually, 5 nations at a time, so that on January 1, 2004, the following nations began two-year memberships: Algeria, Benin, Brazil, the Philippines, and Romania. On January 1, 2005, Argentina, Denmark, Greece, Japan, and the United Republic of Tanzania began two-year memberships. In 2005 Japan, Germany, India, and Brazil made bids for permanent seats on the council.
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