Omkar Dattatray
India is the largest democracy of the world and home to more than 140 crore people and is the country whose political executive is for peace in the world and is consistently advocating for the resolution of the conflicts and problems in the globe through dialogue and discussion .Thus she deserves a permanent membership in united nations security council and this has been the demand of India and the developing countries for many long years .Russia is in favor of giving permanent membership to India which is the third big economy of the world and its prime minister has a grand vision and noble mission of making India a Viksit that is developed nation by 2047.India’s claim to a permanent seat in the UNSC are based on facts and is right and she should be given a permanent membership of the UNSC so that democratic representation is given to the world .India has long argued that it deserves a permanent seat at the UNSC due to its growing geopolitical influence ,stature and contributions to global peacemaking efforts .After US and France ,UK also backs India demand for permanent seat in UNSC.UK Prime minister Keir Stammer has added his voice to a growing chorus for India’s inclusion as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council {UNSC}.”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 said it in his address to the 79th season of the UN GA held in New York .Granting India ,the most populous and largest democracy a permanent seat on the UNSC is not simply desirable ,but necessary for the Council’s legitimacy and effectiveness in addressing global security challenges .India’s claim for a permanent seat at UN is necessary and desirable because ,India is the fastest growing economy of the world .India’s recent acquired status of a Nuclear Weapons state is a point in favor of its claim for a permanent seat at UN .India is the second -largest in terms of population and the largest liberal democracy in the world and hence deserves the seat .India has been one of the founding 51 members of the United Nations which signed the UN Charter in 1945 .Since that time India has been actively participating in all the activities of the UN and other international agencies .India is well qualified by any objective criteria for a permanent membership of the Security Council.EAM Jaishankar said India ,Japan ,Brazil may get a permanent seat in the United Nations ,but for this India has to work hard. Recently ,on 23rd September ,Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the ”Summit of the Future ”at the UNGA in New York .During his speech ,he called for reforms in global institutions like the United Nations .During the recently held 79th session of the UNGA ,permanent member nations of the UNSC ,such as the US ,France and the UK ,extended their support for India to become a permanent member of the UNSC .Bhutan’s PM has said that India deserves permanent UNSC seat .With its significant economic growth and leadership of the Global South ,India deserves a permanent seat at the UN Security Council, says Bhutan’s PM Tshering Tobagy .India’s bid for a permanent membership in a reformed UNSC ,got yet another boost with the support from Bhutan .During the high -level week ,several UN member states ,including permanent members such as France ,UK and US ,explicitly voiced support for India to become a permanent member in a reformed SC .French president Macron supports India’s bid for a permanent membership in UNSC .There has been a growing demand to increase the number of UN permanent members to reflect the contemporary global reality .Despite persistent lobbying ,experts say it is unlikely India will gain permanent membership of the U.N Security Council any time soon for several reasons .India politicians have argued for decades that nation deserves to be member of the UNSC .An aspirational superpower India believes that it has been unfairly denied a seat at the high table .Several visiting foreign political dignitaries and international coalitions that have pushed for the UNSC reforms have also voiced support for India’s candidacy for a permanent membership of the UNSC .However ,despite persistent lobbying by India ,experts are not hopeful of change in the near future .There are four key challenges India must overcome before it secures veto power in the UN.1-China’s Opposition-Among the five permanent security council members all except China -the US,UK ,France and Russia have categorically supported India’s candidature in the past .As a close competitor of India in the regional and international politics, China is unwilling to endorse New Delhi’s position. China is the only Asian country with a permanent UNSC seat. This adds to its power and international prestige, and China is unlikely to want to share this space with India. What is more, particularly amid an ongoing border dispute with India, China will resist any attempt by any of the four members to change the composition of the UNSC. China has unofficially dropped hints that it may back India ,provided New Delhi doesn’t endorse Japan’s bid. China Knows that New Delhi will not break the unity of the G-4 and thus ,considers it a safe bet to pit India against Japan.
2-Diaagreement on Membership Without Veto Power-Some parties have raised the prospect of India gaining UNSC membership without veto power. Groups including Uniting for Consensus -UFC -a powerful coalition led by Italy, with other members including Canada, Mexico, Spain, Pakistan, South Korea ,and Turkey -have advocated reinforcing the working of the General Assembly and increasing the number of non-permanent members. Its argument is that the addition of non-permanent members will make the UN more accountable and representative by accommodating relevant regional voices in the decision making process.
In doing so, the group argues ,the solution would mean there are more than a few chief custodians of the international system .But there are questions about what happens if India gets a high seat without veto power.
Could this be considered a piecemeal approach towards achieving the larger objective? Despite some parties saying they prefer this kind of arrangement, New Delhi is not comfortable with this proposition.
India’s position is that all new permanent members to the security council must possess a veto .Thus ,it is unlikely this outcome will unfold.
3-weatern concerns that India may not align with US priorities-The United States has in principle endorsed India gaining a permanent seat on the Security Council .But not any one believes US policy makers will actually support such a reform in practice. Indeed, in the past, 5-P countries have displayed “a habit of being non-committal’ ‘when it comes to actual decision making on veto power. As former U.S under secretary of state for political Affairs Nicholas Burns said in 2008,”We want to preserve the veto ,and we do not extend a veto to new permanent members.”
4-The Regional Conundrum-India also faces formidable challenges to its leadership emanating from its own region. India influences the region, but not in absolute terms .Indeed ,as instability in the region has increased, so too have New Delhi’s troubles. South Asia has, for example, become a battleground of India-China competition.
And while India-Pakistan rivalry captures most attention, there are major India -related issues that agitate people in Nepal ,Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and even in Bhutan. With the recent change of government ,Bangladesh is no longer on the same page. Queries over India’s regional leadership raises questions over its claims to be a global power. There are convincing arguments that the UN is in desperate need of reform ,particularly the Security Council. Expanding the security council’s membership to include developing countries like India would be benefit the UN and the international community. However New Delhi must make more concerted efforts to address criticisms to further legitimize its demand for a permanent membership. India’s geographical ,political and social influences in South Asia cannot be ignored. Recent criticism around its increasing political intolerance -which is directly linked to the state of democracy in India -must be addressed and resolved .India needs better engagement with the region and much more internal work to strengthen its claim further. Sooner or later India will have to be accommodated into permanent membership in an extended and reformed Security Council and this is a foregone conclusion. Let us wait and watch the developments unfolding in future.
(The author is a columnist, social and KP activist).
