"Fully Understand India's Aspirations": UN Chief On Security Council Seat

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday said he fully understands India's aspirations to become a permanent member of the UN Security Council but asserted that it is for the member countries to decide about the reform of the top global body.

In an exclusive interview with PTI, he acknowledged the need to adjust the composition of the UN Security Council (UNSC) to the "realities of today's world".

"It's not for me to define who will be or who should be in the Security Council, that's for member states (to decide) but I believe that what we need is to have a Security Council that represents today's world," Mr Guterres said.

"The present composition of the Security Council represents the world after the Second World War. Today's world is different. As you mentioned, India is today the largest country with the largest population in the world," he said.

"So, I fully understand India's aspirations in this regard. It's not for me to judge, it's for member states, but I believe, and I repeat, we need to adjust the composition of the Security Council to the realities of today's world. I'm sure that you know those realities quite well," Mr Guterres said.

The comments by the UN Secretary-General came days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi told PTI in an interview that a mid-20th century approach cannot serve the world in the 21st century while strongly calling for reform of the United Nations in line with the changing realities of the world.

India is a strong contender for permanent membership of the UNSC.

New Delhi has been upset over the lack of any meaningful movement forward in the Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN) on Security Council reform.

At present, the UNSC comprises five permanent members and 10 non-permanent member countries which are elected for a two-year term by the General Assembly of the UN.  The five permanent members are Russia, the UK, China, France and the United States and these countries can veto any substantive resolution.

The UN Secretary-General also hailed India's proposal to include the African Union into the G20 as a permanent member, describing it as an "excellent idea".

"I think that it will be a very important voice, and that as the number of African countries is very limited in the G20, that will be a way to compensate for that fact," he said.

Mr Guterres said the induction of the African Union into the G20 will bring the "voice" of the continent to the global decision-making forum, and cited how Africa was impacted by inequality, especially due to colonialism in the past.

"I think that the presence of the African Union will allow that continent to have a much stronger voice in the G20 and in the international architecture.

The UN chief also complimented PM Modi for being able to bring the voice of the Global South into the G20.

He praised India for its initiative to launch the International Year of Millets for 2023.

"Now, food security is for us an essential concern. And what we are discovering is that there are many forgotten ways to solve problems of food security, and those forgotten ways are much better than what sometimes new technologies bring," he said.

"So, I think the initiative on millet is a good way to demonstrate that we have the tools, we have the resources, we have the instruments to solve the problem of food security," Mr Guterres said.

On India's contribution to UN peace-keeping, he said the global body is "extremely grateful" to the country.

"I think we need to pay tribute to all these people (Indian peace-keepers) and recognise that India has been a leading country in this regard," he said.

Asked about the UN Summit of the Future next year and whether he was hopeful of delivering a UN that gives the Global South its due in decision-making by the time of the conclave, Guterres said it is expected to sow the seed of transformation.

"I see the summit of the future as the moment for the seed to transform itself into a beautiful green plant like the ones we have in this room," he said. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)