The United Kingdom has urged for the enlargement of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in both permanent and non-permanent categories and repeated its support for the inclusion of additional permanent seats for Brazil, Germany, Japan, India, and other nations, news agency ANI reported.
Speaking at the UNSC’s annual debate on Security Council reform on Thursday, UK Ambassador to the UN Barbara Woodward said: “Our position is well known. The United Kingdom has long called for the expansion of the Security Council in both the permanent and non-permanent categories.”
“We support the creation of new permanent seats for India, Germany, Japan and Brazil, as well as permanent African representation on the Council,” she further said.
#WATCH | Barbara Woodward, UK Permanent Rep to UN says, “…The UK has long called for the expansion of the Security Council. We support creation of new permanent seats for India, Germany, Japan & Brazil, as well as permanent African representation on Council…”
(Source: UN TV) pic.twitter.com/LYuwTYVJmr
— ANI (@ANI) November 18, 2022
According to Woodward, the UK also favours increasing the number of non-permanent members, bringing the total number of Security Council members to around 20.
Speakers reiterating their calls for expanding the 15-member body and modernising its working procedures to make it more transparent, inclusive, representative, responsible, and effective in a world beset by a cascade of interrelated crises started the General Assembly’s annual discussion.
‘Security Council Reform Is Stalled’: India At UN
In the meantime, Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj of India addressed on behalf of the G4 nations, which also included Brazil, Germany, and Japan. She expressed her disappointment about the dearth of meaningful employment following four decades of fair representation.
She said that the longer Council reform is blocked, the worse its lack of representation would be. “Representation is an inescapable precondition for legitimacy and effectiveness,” she stated.
“The longer the Security Council reform is stalled, the greater its deficit in representation. And representation is an inescapable precondition for its legitimacy and effectiveness,” she added.
The Permanent Representative of India emphasised that it is past due for the Security Council to conform to its Charter obligation to act on behalf of all Members.
“This will not be achieved without enhancing the membership in both categories. Only this will enable the Council to effectively manage today’s global conflicts and increasingly complex and interconnected global challenges it faces today,” she added.
The G4, according to Ambassador Kamboj, have repeatedly called for a single, unified text and new working procedures to ensure an inclusive, open, and transparent process that includes webcasting, record-keeping, and adherence to the General Assembly’s norms of procedure.
“A single consolidated text, preferably with attribution, is the only means to move away from the cycle of repetition of well-known positions that have been the trademark of the IGN (Intergovernmental Negotiations) in the recent past,” she said.
India’s top diplomat reiterated the G4’s position, saying that the four countries support the need for a comprehensive reform of the Security Council, including increased seats in both membership categories, equitable regional representation, more open and inclusive working procedures, and improved relations with other UN bodies, such as the General Assembly.
