Govt's top priority is to get permanent seat in expanded UNSC: V Muraleedharan

The government has accorded highest priority to getting permanent membership at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and is actively engaged in the ongoing intergovernmental negotiations on UNSC reform, said Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan on Wednesday.

In a written response to a question in the Lok Sabha, the minister said India is working alongside other reform-oriented countries through its membership in the G-4 Group (India, Japan, Brazil and Germany) and the L.69 Group, a cross-regional grouping of developing countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America to build support among the UN member states for expansion of the UN Security Council.

"Government of India has accorded highest priority to getting permanent membership for India in an expanded United Nations Security Council. A series of initiatives, involving bilateral and multilateral platforms, have been undertaken by the government in pursuance of this objective. India is actively engaged in the ongoing intergovernmental negotiations on UNSC reform at the UN," Muraleedharan said.

He said as a result of India's sustained efforts, a large number of countries have supported its candidature for permanent membership in an expanded UN Security Council.

This has been expressed in various forms and fora including in bilateral inter-governmental meetings, he added.