NEW DELHI: Former Chinese Envoy to India has an advice for it – do not join hands with Japan if you want entry into the permanent members club of the UN Security Council (UNSC).
India and China did not leave on high notes after the conclusion of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) Summit in Goa on October 15-16. For a long time Beijing, itself a permanent member of the UNSC has not been supportive of India’s bid to become a permanent member in a reflection of the changing world order.
Clarifying the position of China on the issue clear, Ambassador Sun Yuxi said: “We are trying to keep Japan out of UNSC. It is unfortunate India sits with Japan on this to seek UNSC reforms.” Yuxi has served as the Chinese Ambassador to India from 2005-2007 and later on became the Spokesperson of its Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).
“We do not oppose India. If you approach separately we might change our position,” Yuxi said on Tuesday while participating in the BRICS Media Summit here. India has joined hands with Brazil, Japan, and Germany seeking expansion of the Security Council’s permanent membership and; support each other under the grouping of G-4. China has been opposing Japan’s candidature owing to historical reasons.
The UN has 193 members in the General Assembly and the Security Council has 15 members, who take decisions about the international peace and security. There are five permanent members of the Security Council- the UK, France, the US, China, and Russia- and they hold veto power. The G-4 has been seeking to reconfigure of the UNSC saying the present structure reflects the world order as it existed post-World War II. The membership was given not only on the basis of one’s economic clout but also based on whose side a country fought the war. The defeated nations were kept out of the permanent membership and India under the British rule did not stand a chance.
India has been claiming a permanent seat on the table leveraging it is a trillion dollar economy and status of South Asian power.