New York [US], September 27 : Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Saturday (local time) called for reform and expansion of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), seeking the inclusion of additional representatives from Asia, Africa and Latin America and alleging that the West is already overrepresented in the United Nations.
Addressing a press conference in New York, Lavrov said the UN needs to adapt to current global realities by reforming the Security Council and expanding its representation.
“There is also the need to adapt our organisation to new realities, including by reforming the Security Council and expanding it to include additional representatives from Asia, Africa, and Latin America,” Lavrov said.
“We cannot allow for any additional chairs for the West, because the West is already overrepresented in the United Nations Security Council. We wish to see the UN become a genuine centre for harmonising the interests of all states, as its charter requires. And here, of course, a constructive contribution could be made by the Secretariat of the United Nations as well,” he further said.
Lavrov also criticised the current UN team led by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, saying it was unable to implement "the main requirements" of the document [UN Charter] underpinning the organisation's existence.
“However, unfortunately, the current team, led by Antonio Guterres, is unable to implement the main requirements of the document that underpins the organization's very existence.
“Instead, they are promoting biased approaches and double standards, essentially serving the interests of the group of Western states,” he said.
Lavrov further criticised the composition of senior positions within the UN Secretariat, alleging several of the key posts were held by nationals of NATO member states.
“If you look at who is occupying the top ranks of the Secretariat, you will see that the seven or eight most significant positions, when it comes to the functioning of the UN, are occupied by citizens or nationals of UN- sorry, of NATO member states,” he said.
Earlier, in a strong endorsement at the United Nations General Assembly, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov backed India's candidacy for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council, while strongly cautioning against expanding Western representation.
Addressing world leaders at the UNGA, Lavrov emphasised that any reform of the UN Security Council must not dilute the prerogatives of the Council and its permanent members. Outlining Moscow's principled stance, he asserted that reforms should avoid allocating additional seats to Western nations.
"UN Security Council reform cannot involve any additional seats being allocated to Western countries, especially to Germany and Japan, who are now on the path to militarism and revanchism," Lavrov stated.
Advocating for a more inclusive and geographically balanced global architecture, the Russian Foreign Minister voiced strong support for expanding representation from the Global South.
"We are in favour of broadening the representation of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. We support Brazil's and India's candidatures for a permanent seat," Lavrov said, adding, "And at the same time, I wish to emphasise this, we must satisfy the interests of the African continent in keeping with the Israeli consensus and the SEAT declaration."
BRICS nations, which include Russia, had earlier reiterated their support for the aspirations of Brazil and India to play a greater role in the UN, including its Security Council, in the New Delhi declaration.
Expanding on this momentum during the ongoing general debate at the UN headquarters, global leaders converged on the urgent necessity to make the Council reflect present-day geopolitical and economic realities.