Germany, together with India, will continue to push for a reform of the UN Security Council, German Foreign Minister Annalena Burbock said on the eve of her visit to New Delhi.
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Germany and India, along with Brazil and Japan, are included in the “group of four” (G4) – a group of countries whose scale of development is comparable to permanent members of the UN Security Council and requiring permanent membership in the organization.
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Burbock called “insignificant” progress in getting the G4 countries a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
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“However, this does not prevent us from continuing to press for Security Council reform together with our Indian partners. That is why I am very pleased that the four of us met again at the UN General Assembly in September. Today’s geopolitical realities more than ever require a capable and fully functioning Security Council. G4 position was that new permanent seats should not entail any veto rights for the first 15 years. Over and over again we have seen veto power abused,” Burbock said, adding that “the UN Security Council should reflect the realities of our world in the 21st century.
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The UN Security Council is a permanent structure of the organization, which is entrusted with the main responsibility for maintaining international peace and security.
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15 countries always sit in the Security Council – five permanent members and ten temporary ones. Permanent members are Russia, USA, Great Britain, China and France. They have the power of veto. The ten remaining members of the Security Council are elected for two years. Last year, India and a number of other countries were elected as non-permanent members of the UN Security Council for 2021-2022, and India chaired the organization last August.
