Minor stabs of modest reforms not enough to revamp UNSC: India

Minor stabs of modest reforms are not enough to revamp the UN Security Council (UNSC) to meet the challenges posed by the "creaking and crumbling" world, India's Permanent Representative Syed Akbaruddin has said.

Underlining that the world is in a state of "flux", Akbaruddin said anxiety has been generated by large movements of people fleeing extreme levels of armed conflict and brutality across continents.

He said the demand for much closer and more effective multilateralism has increased with a rise in threats of nuclear escalation, armed conflict and massive refugee flow.

"Yet, the spirit of global partnership appears muted at best. While we have created a community of mutual dependence, we are yet to create one of mutual trust and respect. Multilateralism itself would seem to be in retreat," he said at the debate on the annual report on the work of the UN yesterday.

He said that collective action "to proactively strive for peace, justice and order" was needed and India was ready to work with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and UN members in "finding a pathway to a more lasting peace and prosperity for all".

"The ageing pillars of a creaking and crumbling post World War II order are not amenable to improvement by minor stabs of modest reform at the margins," he said in a statement.

He warned that if the UN waited for "dramatic crises" to force it to confront the challenges, "we do so at the cost of deepening the crisis of relevance and performance of the UN in particular, as well as the legitimacy and effectiveness of multilateralism in general".

"India, for its part, stands ready to work with the Secretary-General and the membership in finding a pathway to a more lasting peace and prosperity for all," he said.

India and a large number of countries believe that the current United Nations and its powerful Security Council do not reflect the ground realities of the 21st century.

"If we are to not remain prisoners of historical destiny for all times to come; if we are to keep pace with fast-moving threats we face, we need to go beyond piecemeal changes. If not, we will be condemned to global governance in pieces too," he added.