India abandons UN Security Council seat ambitions

The campaign for permanent seat ended due to lack of support among member states.

An intensive six-year campaign by India for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council finally fizzled out due to lack of support from other member states.

The collapse of the G-4, which includes Brazil, Germany and Japan along with India, indicated their resignation for a permanent membership on the world  body’s high table after its recent letter to General Assembly President Joseph Deiss requesting him to resume the inter-governmental negotiations on reforming the 15-nation Council, a process they had abandoned and went on to circulate a resolution seeking expansion in permanent and non-permanent categories.

But the resolution, which the G-4 thought would be a short-cut to their goals, won—in their own words - 80 pledges of the support which is not even a simple majority in the 192-member Assembly when 128 votes, or two-thirds majority, is required.

Critics of G-4 pointed out that since the resolution has not been tested on the floor of the Assembly, even their claim of 80 member states, as mentioned in the G-4 letter, could be a bit of exaggeration.

“This (the claim of 80 pledges) is an admission of defeat, to say the very least, a shattering blow to their ambitions,” a European diplomat said.

“Obviously, the reform model advocated by G-4 is not acceptable to the member states.” Four months ago, the G-4 opted out of the inter-governmental negotiations, saying that the talks were not making any progress.

The G-4 emphasised the need for the Council’s reform, which they had virtually reduced to mere enlargement and categories—ignoring other important issues like working methods, question of veto, regional representation and relationship between the General Assembly and the Security Council.

During that period, representatives of the G-4 countries, especially India, went virtually door-to-door to lobby support for their resolution that would open the door to permanent and non-permanent categories.

The Security Council currently has five veto-wielding permanent members—Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States—and 10 non-permanent members elected for two-year terms.

Despite the general agreement on enlarging the council, as part of the UN reform process, member states remain sharply divided over the details, most of them sticking to their positions.

Indeed, the General Assembly president said there was little  possibility of the Security Council reform in the near future unless different groups holding steadfast to their respective positions hammer out a compromise on the issue, at least a temporary one.

“Probably it is not possible actually to find a solution where one of these different groups will get the total of their aspirations,” President Deiss said.