India continued to push strongly for a reformed U.N.-led multilateral system during what was a busy week in Indian diplomacy at the United Nations General Assembly’s (UNGA) 77th session last week in New York.
Reforms, as The Hindu’s Sriram Lakshman reported from the U.N., have been a central theme of External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s visit. On Thursday (September 22), Jaishankar made a strong case for U.N. Security Council (UNSC) reforms along with his “G4” counterparts - from Brazil, Germany and Japan. The group reiterated its commitment to pushing forward reforms and expressed dissatisfaction at the lack of progress.
The Indian Minister, the following day, along with members of the U.N. reform-oriented ‘L.69’ group of developing countries, backed a ‘Call to Action’ joint statement on reforms. The countries said they recognised that the “lack of progress” in UNSC reform had “serious implications” not just for the relevance of such institutions but also for global peace and security.
