India hits out against those blocking UNSC overhaul by manipulating procedures

United Nations, Oct 25 (IANS) As the world organisation on its 80th anniversary looks to the future, India has said that the Security Council requires an immediate “fundamental overhaul” and criticised those manipulating procedures to stall it 

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also called for the urgent reform of the Council to expand its membership to bring stability in a multipolar world.

Speaking on Friday at the Council’s debate commemorating the 80th anniversary of the UN’s founding, India’s Permanent Representative P Harish called the attempts to hold back reforms through procedural roadblocks a disservice to the Global South.

“An outdated Council architecture that mirrors geopolitical realities of 1945 is not equipped to handle the challenges of 2025”, he said.

“The existing 80-year-old framework needs an immediate and fundamental overhaul [and] postponing it indefinitely [by] playing on procedure and process does immense disservice to our citizens, especially in the Global South”, he said.

“Council reform must include expansion in both permanent and non-permanent categories, and must be carried out through text-based negotiations conducted in a time-bound framework”, he said.

A small group of countries led by Italy and includes Pakistan have put spokes in the wheels of reform.

Known as Uniting for Consensus, the group has been preventing through procedures the adoption of a negotiating text to conduct the negotiations.

Guterres, who was in Hanoi, addressed the Council in a video, pointing out that the Asia-Pacific region, which represent half of humanity, is under-represented with only one seat.

“Reform of the Security Council is imperative, and long overdue, for the maintenance of global order and safety”, he said. “This includes expanding the membership”.

He pointed out that more than half the peace-keeping missions and many special political missions are in Africa, yet the continent does not have a permanent seat.

“Expanding the membership is not only about justice; it is also about results. It has the potential to undo deadlocks, and offer stability in our increasingly multipolar world”, he said.

Harish also demanded a greater role for the Global South in decision-making across the UN.

“Global decision-making structures need to be more democratic and inclusive so as to respond effectively to the needs of the Global South”, he said.

“This bloc of countries represents the overwhelming proportion of humanity and has its unique set of challenges, particularly in the areas of development, climate and financing” and, therefore, “needs greater representation and say in all UN organs and processes”, he said.

--IANS

al/rad