(VOVworld)-China has assumed the rotating presidency of the UN Security Council for November. Liu Jieyi, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, took over the rotating presidency from Agshin Mehdiyev, permanent representative of Azerbaijan.

Liu Jieyi, China's permanent representative to the United Nations (Photo: Reuters)

According to the council's provisional work program for November, the 15-nation UN body has a very heavy work load, including more than 20 meetings or consultations on nearly 20 issues. The hot issues in Africa and the Middle East are top on the council's agenda. Under the UN Charter, the Security Council has the primary responsibility for the maintenance of peace and security in the world at large. The UN Security Council presidency rotates every month among the council members in alphabetical order of their names, while each president holds office for one calendar month. The last time China took over the rotating presidency was in June 2012.