India's external affairs minister S Jaishankar addressed the 78th United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday and said that the global organisation must aim to make the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) 'more contemporary.'
Citing India’s G20 presidency as an example, he pointed out how Africa was made a permanent member of the group and exhorted the United Nations to draw inspiration and take steps to adapt to changing times.
At the G20 Summit in New Delhi earlier this month, the grouping of emerging and developed economies adopted the New Delhi Leaders' Declaration through consensus and included the African Union as a permanent member of the bloc.
“India’s initiation that led to Africa becoming a permanent member of G20 should inspire the UN, a much older organisation, to make the Security Council more contemporary,” Jaishankar said at UNGA.
He added, “The UN should make the Security Council contemporary. Broad representation is a prerequisite for effectiveness and credibility.”
“As the United Nations itself symbolises, finding common ground is imperative. To listen to others and to respect their viewpoints is not a weakness; it is the basics of cooperation. Only then can collective efforts on global issues be successful,” Jaishankar said.
Pitching for India’s seat as a permanent member at the UN high table, the minister added, "India, the world’s most populous country, has been at the forefront of years-long efforts to reform the Security Council, saying it rightly deserves a seat as a permanent member at the UN high table, which in its current form does not represent geo-political realities of the 21st century.”
Further, avoiding a direct reference to Canada, Jaishankar also mentioned that political convenience should not determine responses to terrorism, extremism and violence. Though Jaishankar did not mention Canada, a country with which India has seen tensions rising of late, the minister said that "respect for territorial integrity and non-interference in internal affairs cannot be exercises in cherry picking. When reality departs from the rhetoric we must have the courage to call it out."
During his speech at the 78th UNGA, the minister called for a fair, equitable and democratic world order. “In our deliberations, we often advocate the promotion of a rules-based order. From time to time, respect for the UN Charter is also involved. But for all the talk, it is still a few nations who shape the agenda and seek to define the norms. This can't go on indefinitely nor will it go unchallenged”, Jaishankar said.
“A fair, equitable and democratic order will surely emerge once we all put our minds to it. And for a start, that means ensuring that rule-makers do not subjugate rule-takers”, he added.
