India should become permanent member of UNSC: Russian FM

Moscow, Oct 21 (WISHAVWARTA/IANS) Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has that India, Brazil and African countries should be represented in the UN Security Council (UNSC) on a permanent basis to ensure the representativeness of the global majority. Lavrov made the remarks during an interview with aif.ru, state-owned TASS news agency reported on Sunday. “Countries such as India, Brazil, as well as representatives of Africa should have been on a permanent basis in the Security Council for a long time. This is necessary to ensure representativeness, representation of the global majority,” Lavrov was quoted as saying. At the UN General Assembly’s high-level meeting last month, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer also voiced strong support for India’s inclusion as a permanent member of a reformed Security Council, along with permanent African representation, Brazil, Japan and Germany and more seats for elected members as well. “If we want the system to deliver for the poorest and most vulnerable then their voices must be heard. We need to make the system more representative and more responsive to those who need it most. So we will make the case not just for fairer outcomes, but fairer representation in how we reach them. And this also applies to the Security Council. It has to change to become a more representative body, willing to act — not paralysed by politics. We want to see permanent African representation on the Council, Brazil, India, Japan and Germany as permanent members, and more seats for elected members as well,” Starmer had said while addressing the 79th session of the UN General Assembly in New York. Additionally, Chile, France, Micronesia, and Portugal have also backed India’s quest for a permanent seat on the Council. The US and Russia are among the permanent members of the Security Council, which also backs India’s bid for a permanent UNSC seat. -India should become