Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said Sri Lanka will support India’s bid to become a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), the Indian media reported yesterday.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has made the statement to the Indian media during a personal visit to India’s Andhra Pradesh last Saturday.
India has been pushing diplomatic efforts to expand and reform the UNSC with the adding of permanent and non-permanent members. Lest India’s bid be accepted by the UN Security Council, India will become a regional power at UNSC along with China.
These committees will have regular discussions with relevant government agencies to study several identified issues.
Responding to Daily News, former Secretary to the Foreign Ministry Bernard Goonetilleke said the Prime Minister Wickremesinghe’s statement is a reiteration of Sri Lanka’s diplomatic position that has been held for a long period of time supportive of India on becoming a permanent member at the UNSC.
Goonetillake pointed out that the issue of Security Council has been taken up for consideration during the last three decades with no resolution to the matter due to variety of reasons. The reforms of the UNSC incorporates key issues including categories of membership, veto held by the five permanent members, regional representation, the size of an enlarged Council and its working methods and the SC General Assembly relationship. According to Goonetilleke, member states, especially regional groups, in this case, Africa, South America and even Asia have developed different positions with regards to the matter at concern.
UN Security Council has fifteen members including five permanent members, UK, United States, Russia, France and China. India will be able to join the elite club if the bid to become a permanent member of the SC is accepted.
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