Ensured that assistance does not create indebtedness, says India; pitches for reform of UN Security Council

New York [US], November 10 : Noting that reformed multilateralism with the reform of the UN Security Council at its core is crucial for dealing with the complex challenges of today's world, India said on Tuesday that the international structure for maintaining peace and security and peacebuilding needs to be reformed.
In a statement at the High-Level Open Debate of the UN Security Council on 'Exclusion, Inequality and Conflict', Minister of State for External Affairs Rajkumar Ranjan Singh said that India has always strived to foster global solidarity across the world with its development partnership efforts fully respecting national priorities.

In a veiled dig at China, he said India has ensured that its assistance remains demand-driven, contributes to employment generation and capacity building and does not create indebtedness.
"India has always strived to foster global solidarity across the world with our development partnership efforts fully respecting national priorities and ensuring that our assistance remains demand-driven, contributes to employment generation and capacity building and does not create indebtedness. This is particularly true in countries in the post-conflict phase," he said.
"Whether it is with our neighbours under our "Neighbourhood First" policy or with African partners or with other developing countries, India has remained and will continue to be a source of strong support to help them build back better and stronger," he added.
The minister said that persisting exclusion and inequality in the membership of the Security Council needs to be addressed.
"The international structure for maintaining peace and security and peacebuilding needs to be reformed. Global power and the capacities to address problems are much more dispersed today, than they were seventy-six years ago. How long rightful voices of the developing world including Africa can be denied? We are therefore convinced that reformed multilateralism, with the reform of the UN Security Council at its core is crucial for dealing with the complex challenges of today's world," he said.
Singh said during the past few decades, while the inter-state conflicts have decreased, intra-state conflicts have attracted a much higher level of attention from this Council.
"These conflicts have, however, several long-standing political, economic and social causes which require attention not only of this Council but also of other organs of the United Nations which have specialized roles for peace-building and socio-economic development. There is clearly much to be done to help the countries in intra-state conflicts to achieve sustainable peace," he said.
The minister said that international efforts in the maintenance of peace and security need to be inclusive and the international community needs to walk the talk by ensuring a predictable and enhanced flow of resources to countries in the post-conflict phase.
He said it is important to actively support the post-conflict reconstruction agenda, particularly in Africa.
Noting that some regional and sub-regional organizations have become more capable of addressing the conflict situations and member states have reposed faith increasingly in their capacity, he said this has brought positive synergy to the actions of the United Nations and Security Council and the Security Council has the responsibility to support this trend and encourage and enable those regional and sub-regional organizations.
"The spread of terrorism, particularly in the countries facing conflicts, can reverse the efforts of the international community. It is therefore imperative that terrorism in any form or manifestation is condemned and those supporting it any manner are held accountable," he said.