Rep. Ami Bera Renews Push In Support Of India’s Permanent UNSC Seat
WASHINGTON, DC-India’s long-standing bid for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council received fresh support in the US Congress, with lawmakers arguing that the UN’s power structure no longer reflects today’s geopolitical realities.
During a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on reforming the United Nations on July 22, Congressman Ami Bera said any meaningful overhaul of the organization must address the composition of the Security Council, explicitly naming India among the countries that deserve consideration for permanent membership.
“If we were designing a United Nations that was reflective of today’s world, we would design it very differently,” Bera said, noting that the Security Council’s permanent membership still reflects “what the world looked like in 1945.”
Referring to proposals to expand the Security Council, Bera said the G4 nations – Brazil, Germany, India and Japan – should be included.
The remarks came during a hearing titled United Nations Accountability and Reform: Advancing an America First Foreign Policy Through Strategic Diplomacy and Burden Sharing, where US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz discussed the Trump administration’s efforts to reform the UN system.
Responding to Bera’s question, Waltz acknowledged that the Security Council no longer reflects today’s global realities but cautioned that reform remains politically difficult.
The broader hearing focused on the Trump administration’s proposals to reform the United Nations, including reducing spending and streamlining peacekeeping operations.
India has long sought permanent membership of an expanded UN Security Council, arguing that the body’s current composition no longer reflects contemporary geopolitical realities.
Despite broad support from many UN member states, negotiations have remained stalled because of opposition from some countries and the absence of consensus among the existing permanent members over the structure of any reform. (IANS)
