External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, chairing the UNSC open debate on Maintenance of International Peace and Security’, in a powerful speech called for sweeping reforms and said the credibility of the UN depends on its response to the key challenges such as pandemics, climate change, conflicts or terrorism.
Presiding over the debate, the foreign minister called for an “honest conversation” on the effectiveness of multilateral institutions and said member states from Latin America, Africa, Asia, and the Small Island Developing States should have credible and continuing representation in the Security Council. Decision about their future can no longer be taken without their participation, he added. Apart from the climate crisis, conflicts and the Covid pandemic, the foreign minister also called out nations that “justify and protect perpetrators of terrorism” in multilateral platforms in what was seen as a veiled attack on China and its close ally Pakistan.
