BRICS final declaration backs UN Security Council reforms to make it ‘effective and efficient’

According to the final declaration of the 15th BRICS summit, the member countries have favoured increased representation of developing nations in the UN Security Council.

The statement has supported Brazil’s, India’s and South Africa’s bid to play a greater role in the UNSC. 

“We support a comprehensive reform of the UN, including its Security Council, with a view to making it more democratic, representative, effective and efficient, and to increase the representation of developing countries in the Council's memberships so that it can adequately respond to prevailing global challenges and support the legitimate aspirations of emerging and developing countries from Africa, Asia and Latin America, including Brazil, India and South Africa, to play a greater role in international affairs, in particular in the United Nations, including its Security Council," read the joint statement.

Earlier on August 23, PM Modi said in his speech that it was high time reforms were introduced at UNSC and multilateral organisations like the World Trade Organization (WTO).

“In his various interventions, Prime Minister highlighted the following: Called for setting defined timelines for UNSC reforms, Called for reform of Multilateral Financial Institutions and Called for reform of WTO,” a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) read.

PM Modi in his statement also called on BRICS countries to support the African Union’s permanent membership of G20.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping earlier also supported the increased role of developing nations in global governance. 

"It is necessary to elevate the representation and the voice of developing countries in the global governance and to support developing states in achievement of better results," the Chinese leader said.

"It is necessary to adhere to a true multilateralism, to build relations of global partnership in the interest of development and to establish a safe and stable international environment for common development," Xi Jinping said, pointing out that China has always shared a common fate with developing countries.

While speaking at the BRICS summit, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also backed calls for reforming the UNSC. 

Guterres said that “today's global governance structures reflect yesterday's world" and that for multilateral institutions to be universal they needed reform.

"They were largely created in the aftermath of World War II when many African countries were still ruled by colonial powers and were not even at the table," Guterres said in remarks on the final day of the BRICS summit.