India defends its claim to permanent membership at UNSC

India's Permanent Representative to the United NationsRuchira Kamboj defended India's claim to its permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council stating that expanding the non-permanent membership s will widen the difference between permanent and non-permanent members.

Addressing the UNSC, India's PR to UN Ruchira Kamboj clarified India's stand that India is in favour of the expansion of the United Nations Security Council membership in both the permanent and non-permanent categories, as this is the only way, the only way to achieve genuine reform of the Security Council and make it legitimate, representative, responsive and effective.

But she also added that expanding only in the non-permanent category will not solve the problem. "It will widen the difference between permanent and non-permanent members even more further entrenching a dispensation that is no longer relevant in the current geopolitical context," she added. "We all acknowledge the fact that the present structure of the Security Council is not reflective of contemporary realities and that there is an urgent need to reform this," she further stood.

Citing a 2015 Framework Document, she added, "On the issue of categories of membership, a total of 113 member states out of 122 who submitted their positions in the Framework Document supported expansion in both of the existing categories specified in the Charter."

"This means that more than 90 per cent of the written submissions in the Document are in favour of expansion in both categories of membership specified in the Charter, " she said on why permanent memberships should also be expanded.

On arguments of expansion in the permanent category would be undemocratic PR further added, "We fail to understand how something that is clearly being called for by the majority of the membership is undemocratic. We cannot and must not continue to be hostage to the minority in intergovernmental negotiations," she affirmed.

She further mentioned that the information is "readily" available in the Framework Document of 2015 and "just needs to be reflected clearly" in the next updated iteration of the Elements Paper.

"Combining this updation of already available data with the positions expressed from the Floor during subsequent IGN meetings, including today's proceedings, will provide us with a clear way to assign attributions to the various positions on this important cluster in our single consolidated text," she added.

She clarified that she is not discussing which specific member states would occupy the new permanent seats in an expanded and reformed Council, but she is simply discussing a possible framework for the creation of new permanent seats.

 (ANI)