Pakistan pushes for focusing on UNSC failure to end Israel’s war against Gaza

UNITED NATIONS (APP) - Highlighting the UN Security Council’s failure to stop Palestinians’ 'slaughter' in the Israeli–blockaded Gaza Strip, Pakistan has underscored the need to make the 15-member body more representative, transparent and accountable to ensure world peace and security.

“For more than a month now, a brutal war has raged in Gaza, with blatant war crimes and genocide being perpetrated by Israel against innocent Palestinian women and children,” Ambassador Munir Akram said in the UN General Assembly’s debate on how to reform the Security Council, pointing out that inability of its permanent members to agree on decisive action is the primary reason for frequent failures to respond effectively to conflicts.

In this regard, the Pakistani envoy said that adding new permanent members to an enlarged Council would statistically multiply the prospects of its paralysis. “The problem cannot be the solution,” said Ambassador Akram.

The Italy-Pakistan-led Uniting for Consensus (UfC) group, he added, remains 'staunchly opposed' to any proposals for the creation of additional permanent seats in the Security Council. “Any country seeking a more frequent presence on the Security Council should do so by subjecting itself to the democratic process of periodic election by the General Assembly,” the Pakistani envoy said. The Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN) on Security Council reform, which began in February 2009 have remained stalled.

In his address, Ambassador Akram said the UfC’s proposal to add 11-12 new non-permanent seats would offer greater representation to the vast majority of small and medium States, 59 of which have never served on the Security Council. Besides ensuring 'equitable geopolitical' representation, he said, a larger number of non-permanent members could balance the inordinate influence of the 5 permanent members. Moreover, the periodic election of the non-permanent members would ensure both the accountability of Security Council members as well as the democratization of the United Nations. The African demand for two permanent seats was different from the quest of “4 individual States” (G-4) for permanent membership, as they would be filled by States selected by Africa and “accountable” to Africa and could be replaced by Africa, Ambassador Akram explained.

The “four individual aspirants” would be accountable to no one and seek to advance their own national interests and ambitions. “In any case,” he added, “there are more than 4 or 6 States – perhaps over 20 – which can, based on their size, defence capability, economic status, peacekeeping role and contributions to peace and security, claim the mantle of more frequent representation on the Security Council,” adding that the UfC’s offer for longer-term seats could accommodate them.

Ambassador Akram warned that no model of Council reform can be developed until member states reconcile the key divergences within the five clusters of issues. Consideration of the Council’s reform must remain exclusively within the intergovernmental negotiations process, he said, cautioning against duplication at the forthcoming Summit of the Future. Several delegates highlighted the need for more inclusive and representative membership, while others argued for limiting the use of the veto.

“Never before has this issue been more pressing, both contextually and practically,” President of the 193-member Assembly, Dennis Francis, said as he opened the debate. At a moment of increased violence, he said, the United Nations seems paralyzed largely due to divisions within the Security Council, which is falling dangerously short of its mandate as the primary custodian for the maintenance of international peace and security. Without structural reform, the performance and legitimacy of the Council will continue to suffer and so will the credibility and relevance of the United Nations itself, he said, urging Member States to break through ingrained positions and take practical steps in support of effectiveness and inclusion.