Donald Trump listens while UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during at UN headquarters.
US President Donald Trump, once a harsh critic of the United Nations, took a measured tone today and called for reforms in the body - a view India has taken for long. Addressing a meeting on UN reforms a day ahead of his address at the General Assembly, President Trump said he encouraged member states to strike out for change and not hold onto past systems that were not working.
All members of the world body should take "bold stands with an eye towards changing business as usual", President Trump said.
India has been making a strong bid for a permanent seat in an expanded Security Council, which currently has five permanent members -- China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the US. Calling for inclusion of the world's largest democracies in an expanded permanent security council, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had earlier said it would carry "greater credibility and legitimacy" and be effective in addressing the challenges of the 21st century."
Last year, India's ambassador to UN Syed Akbaruddin said the current structure and working methods of the Security Council are "divorced from reality and represent a bygone era".
President Trump is known for his strong views on UN Security Council. In past, he had labeled it as weak, incompetent and "not a friend of the United States". Once he had even described it as a "club for people to get together, talk and have a good time". His tone today was thus seen as an indication of the need for global support against North Korea after its latest round of nuclear tests.
The US, President Trump said, will "pledge to be partners" in order to make the UN "a more effective force" for peace. "In recent years, the United Nations has not reached its full potential due to bureaucracy and mismanagement," he said, adding, "We are not seeing the results in line with this investment."
In a show of strength today, the US flew four F-35B stealth fighters and two B-1B bombers over the Korean peninsula, US ally South Korea said today, to "demonstrate the deterrence capability" of their alliance against North Korea's "nuclear and missile threats".
President Trump will address the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, where he is expected to address concerns around his "America First" policy, questions on his support for the UN and a series of global crises.
All members of the world body should take "bold stands with an eye towards changing business as usual", President Trump said.
India has been making a strong bid for a permanent seat in an expanded Security Council, which currently has five permanent members -- China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the US. Calling for inclusion of the world's largest democracies in an expanded permanent security council, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had earlier said it would carry "greater credibility and legitimacy" and be effective in addressing the challenges of the 21st century."
Last year, India's ambassador to UN Syed Akbaruddin said the current structure and working methods of the Security Council are "divorced from reality and represent a bygone era".
President Trump is known for his strong views on UN Security Council. In past, he had labeled it as weak, incompetent and "not a friend of the United States". Once he had even described it as a "club for people to get together, talk and have a good time". His tone today was thus seen as an indication of the need for global support against North Korea after its latest round of nuclear tests.
The US, President Trump said, will "pledge to be partners" in order to make the UN "a more effective force" for peace. "In recent years, the United Nations has not reached its full potential due to bureaucracy and mismanagement," he said, adding, "We are not seeing the results in line with this investment."
In a show of strength today, the US flew four F-35B stealth fighters and two B-1B bombers over the Korean peninsula, US ally South Korea said today, to "demonstrate the deterrence capability" of their alliance against North Korea's "nuclear and missile threats".
President Trump will address the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, where he is expected to address concerns around his "America First" policy, questions on his support for the UN and a series of global crises.
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