NEW YORK, Oct. 15 - Ukraine won a seat on the U.N. Security Council on Thursday and immediately promised to use the platform to wage a political battle against Russia for annexing Crimea and supporting eastern Ukrainian separatists, AP reported.

The 193-member General Assembly also elected four other countries — Egypt, Japan, Senegal and Uruguay — to the U.N.'s most powerful body. All five countries were unopposed in their bids for the non-permanent seats and will start their two-year terms on Jan. 1.

Fireworks are expected when Ukraine takes its seat alongside permanent member Russia.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin called the election a very important day for Ukraine and the United Nations in its struggle for peace "under Russian aggression — and fighting against Russian aggressions." He said the country is proud of the 177 votes it received, calling the strong support "a sign of world solidarity with Ukraine."

Klimkin was in New York earlier this week meeting with U.N. ambassadors and letting the world know that relations with Russia will be anything but conciliatory.

"Election to the Security Council is of special importance for us as a backdrop of the ongoing Russian aggression," Klimkin told reporters on Tuesday. "For the first time, we have an absolutely unique and unimaginable situation ... that a permanent member of the Security Council is an aggressor in Ukraine, waging a hybrid war against Ukraine."

He said Ukraine will make the case that Russian troops, mercenaries and weapons must leave the country's east, that Ukraine must regain full control of its border with Russia, and that the international community, the U.N., and human rights monitors must have full access to the region.

Ukraine will also be working to keep up "political pressure on Russia to recognize that the Crimea is illegally occupied," to strengthen U.S. and European sanctions, and to get human rights monitors into Crimea, Klimkin said.

Klimkin predicted that "the Crimea will get back to Ukraine far earlier than many believe," arguing that no one in the world can feel safe with Russia breaking international laws and rules which "is disrupting the whole world system."

Russia had quietly campaigned against Ukraine's bid, according to diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity because discussions have been private. (ap/ez)