India Bats for Urgent Reforms at United Nations
'UNSC has to Become Effective, Democratic and Accountable': Tanmaya Lal
By R Anil Kumar
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India remains firmly committed to total elimination of nuclear weapons: MEA at UN
UNITED NATIONS, September 28. Secretary (West), Ministry of External Affairs India, Tanmaya Lal, delivered India’s statement at the High-level Meeting to commemorate and promote the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons at the United Nations.
Lal noted that the world is facing devastating armed conflicts, and the existing multilateral responses are falling short in both preventing and resolving these crises.
He stated, “Serious armed conflicts are impacting lives, economies, and societies across geographies in our interconnected world. The current multilateral response is falling seriously short in ending and preventing such conflictsin tackling unrelenting threats from terrorism and transnational organized crimes, and in ensuring maritime security.”
“Nuclear weapons continue to pose a grievous danger to humanity. India remains firmly committed to the goal of universal, non-discriminatory nuclear disarmament in a specified time frame.” he said.
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) urgently needs reform to become more effective, democratic, and accountable, the Secretary (West) of the Ministry of External Affairs said on, reiterating India’s longstanding bid to make changes to the horseshoe table.
During an Open Debate on Leadership for Peace, here, Indian diplomat Tanmaya Lal stressed the urgent need for reform of the UNSC and argued that the outdated structure fails to address the escalating global conflicts and security challenges effectively.
Lal pointed out that the UNSC was established over eight decades ago, a time when many member states were still colonies.
“The UNSC has to become representative, transparent, efficient, effective, democratic, and accountable,” Lal said while urging for the need for text-based negotiations.
Without naming any country, he slammed those resisting meaningful changes to the global governance framework, asserting that such opposition undermines the UN’s legitimacy and its contributions to development efforts.
UNSC reform
India has long sought a permanent seat on the UNSC to better represent the interests of developing nations and the geopolitical realities of the current world order.
This push has gained momentum recently, with increased support from various countries. The UNSC currently consists of 15 members: five permanent members—China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States—who hold veto power, and ten non-permanent members elected for two-year terms.
Lal’s comments came as part of broader discussions among nations advocating for UNSC reform. The Group of Four (G4), which includes India, Brazil, Germany, and Japan, has reiterated calls for an expanded UNSC that reflects the current geopolitical realities.
They stress the necessity for a greater representation from Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America within both permanent and non-permanent categories.
Condemns Pakistan
While delivering his remarks, Lal also condemned Pakistan for its support of terrorism. The Indian diplomat highlighted that Pakistan’s involvement in training and harbouring terrorists is well-documented and called on the international community to reject these actions.
“It is high time that Pakistan starts working for its own people,” he said, stressing that its ongoing export of terror cannot succeed.
Their cynical export of terror in pursuit of their vicious agenda can never succeed Such continuing threats to international peace and security must be firmly rejected by the international community, “Lal stated.
