India-led efforts give boost to UNSC reforms in 2015

India's representative blamed the UNSC for creating the refugee crisis by failing in its responsibility to find a political solution to the conflict

The long-pending United Nations Security Council (UNSC) reform process got a much-needed breakthrough after efforts led by India resulted in the adoption of text-based negotiations in 2015, a year that also saw the world body grappling with the emergence of Islamic State, climate change and refugee crisis.

India's was the strongest voice among the UN membership that called for text-based negotiations to move the snail-paced UNSC reform process forward to reflect the realities of the 21st century.

Unrelenting diplomatic efforts by India and other nations resulted in a significant achievement when the General Assembly adopted by consensus in September a negotiating text that contained positions of UN member states on Security Council reforms and how the powerful 15-nation body should be expanded in its permanent and non-permanent categories.

India termed as "historic" and "path-breaking" the adoption of the document, saying the decision put the inter- governmental process formally on an "irreversible text-based negotiations path" and changed the "dynamics" of the negotiations on achieving UNSC reforms.

The adoption of the text also gave a boost to India's bid for a permanent seat in the revamped Council. India was among the first to seek a conclusion of the reform process by the 70th anniversary of the United Nations.

Underscoring that the process to expand the Council "cannot be seen to be an exercise ad infinitum", India had said a results-based timeline is crucial to achieve a concrete outcome and felt that the 70th anniversary of the UN, being commemorated this year, is an appropriate milestone to propel the reform process, which should be completed within the next one year.

The 70th anniversary of the UN also provided an opportune platform for the world leaders to come together and hammer out solutions to tackle growing global challenges of terrorism, sustainable development and climate change.

The ambitious 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda that aims to end poverty, hunger and assure gender equally and build a life of dignity for all over the next 15 years was adopted in the presence of world leaders including Pope Francis and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Modi also made a strong call for "climate justice" in his address to world leaders at the high-level sustainable development summit in September as he underlined the need for common but differentiated responsibility in tackling climate change and for assuring equity for developing countries, who he said should not be condemned for their developmental activities.

Modi's call for climate justice formed the bedrock for India's negotiations at the crucial Climate Change Summit in Paris earlier this month when after two weeks of intensive negotiations.

Security concerns were also at the top of the global agenda in 2015 with the terror group ISIS continuing its brutal assault on innocent citizens in the West Asia as well as in Paris.

The brutality of the terror group united the otherwise divisive UN Security Council, which unanimously adopted a resolution last month calling on countries around the world to take "all necessary measures" to fight the group and destroy its safe haven.

The resolution came in the in the wake of a series of deadly attacks in Paris perpetrated by ISIS in which 130 people were killed.

India said the terror attacks in Paris and Beirut highlighted the urgent need to finalise a global convention on terrorism, as it asserted that the financing being provided to terrorist organisations such as ISIS and Lashkar-e-Taiba needs to be addressed collectively.

India also sent a strong message to Pakistan on terrorism when Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif used the UN podium to offer a four-point peace initiative with India.

Responding to Sharif's peace proposal in his address to the General Assembly, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said India does not need four points but "just one - give up terrorism and let us sit down and talk".

World leaders were also confronted with a spiralling refugee crisis and were called upon to embrace more migrants fleeing terror and persecution in troubled hot spots Iraq and Syria.

India stressed on the need for the international community to maintain open borders and not close them to refugees and cautioned against propagating racism and xenophobia, in the wake of nations refusing to take in refugees particularly from Syria amid heightened security concerns following terrorist attacks in Paris.

India's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Bhagwant Bishnoi, blamed the UN Security Council for creating the refugee crisis by failing in its responsibility to find a political solution to the conflict.