G4 nations push for early UN Security Council reform, call current council unfit for purpose

NEW YORK: Foreign ministers of the G4 grouping – Brazil, Germany, India and Japan called for urgent reform of the United Nations Security Council, saying the 80-year-old architecture has left the council unable to maintain international peace and security.

Brazil’s Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira, Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann David Wadephul, India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Japan’s Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu met on the sidelines of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly in New York.

In a joint statement, the ministers said they reviewed discussions in the Inter-Governmental Negotiations (IGN) framework during the 80th General Assembly session and assessed the prospects for reform.

“The representativeness, legitimacy, credibility and efficacy of the UNSC are in question,” the statement said, adding that the council’s anachronistic structure was not reflective of contemporary geopolitical realities.

The ministers said expansion of the council in both permanent and non-permanent categories was central to reform and supported by a majority of member states. They stressed the need to improve representation for underrepresented regions, including Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

The group welcomed the reform model presented by the African Group in the IGN and reiterated support for enhanced African representation, including in the permanent category.

The ministers expressed concern over lack of progress in the IGN process despite 18 years of discussions, criticizing the presentation of a so-called bridging proposal before the start of text-based negotiations. The proposal, they said, does not reflect the views of a clear majority favouring expansion in both categories.

They said the G4 would collaborate with other reform-oriented groups to develop a consolidated model reflecting the majority view and to begin text-based negotiations as a priority.

The ministers said they would continue close coordination during the 81st General Assembly session and tasked officials to follow up, with a stock-taking at the next Director General-level meeting in New Delhi.