India rejects UNSC seat sans veto
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
New Delhi April 2, IRNA
India-UN
India on March 31 strongly ruled out accepting membership of the expanded UN Security Council minus veto power, saying sans veto new members would not be able to fulfill the mandate of the General Assembly appropriately, reported the Press Trust of India.
Responding to suggestions at a meeting attended by diplomats from more than 150 countries in the United Nations headquarters in New York, India's ambassador to UN Nirupam Sen said both in terms of decision-making and in legal constitutional terms, "We cannot accept any discrimination between permanent members." The meeting was organised by India, Japan, Germany and Brazil, a grouping named G-4 formed to mount pressure on UNSC.
G-4 diplomats pointed out that the number of member states represented at the meeting far exceeded the two-thirds majority of 128 needed in the 191-member General Assembly for the passage of any measure to expand the Council.
On the other hand, the meeting called by the "Coffee Club" headed by Pakistani Ambassador Munir Akram, which is opposing expansion in the permanent category, hardly attracted 40 member states, the PTI said.
Sen pointed out that even the Pakistani representative earlier agreed new permanent members without veto will fail to withstand the pressure of old permanent members with veto.
The Indian representative debated the word veto does not occur in the Charter. It simply says the decisions in Council "shall be made by an affirmative vote of 9 members including the concurring votes of permanent members." Wouldn't it look "somewhat ridiculous" if it was amended to read that there should be other permanent members, he asked.
Replying on a query, Sen said, India would have no objection if veto is abolished. Then there would be no discrimination.
2160/1420/1432
::IRNA No.013 02/04/2005 11:45 --End
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