UNSC Antonio Guterres says adding permanent members is now being taken seriously

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has sounded a note of optimism on stalled Security Council reforms, saying that adding permanent members is now being taken seriously. He noted that four of the five permanent members of the Council were in favour of adding members to the Council.

India is pressing for Council reforms, which have stalled for decades and lobbying for a permanent seat. Russia, the US, Britain, and France have endorsed India for a permanent seat. However, the other permanent member, China, has so far been against reforms. As its President this month, India convened a ministerial-level meeting of the Council on reforming the UN which put a spotlight on the Council’s basic architecture of permanent membership mired in post-World War II geopolitics which has changed dramatically in 75 years. The meeting heard broad support for reforms from across the world, with only a small number of countries opposing all or most of it.