Explain the factors which justify India's claim for a permanent seat at the UN security council. (UPSC CSE Mains 2022 - Political Science and International Relations, Paper 2)
The United Nations Security Council is a vital and imperative organ of the UN. Ensuring international peace and security, recommendations for the admission of new UN members in the General Assembly and approving changes to the UN Charter, peacekeeping operations, international sanctions, and military actions are under the jurisdiction of the UNSC. It will not be wrong to state that if the UN is a body, UNSC is its heart.
India’s bid for a permanent seat
India’s bid for a permanent seat is multipronged. Over the last few years, India has extensively lobbied for this at the global stage.
- First and foremost, India enjoys a long standing and deep historical relation with the UNSC as it was one of the founding members of the organization. The association, besides being long, has also been a meaningful one, wherein India has sent more than 2.5 lakh soldiers to the UN Peacekeeping forces. As of early 2022, Indian soldiers have served in 49 of the 71 global peacekeeping missions since 1948.
- Secondly, India is home to nearly one-sixth of the global population and is all set to become the most populous nation. A country representing 1.4 billion people undisputedly deserves a spot at the top decision making table.
- Third, India has demonstrated its skills as a responsible world leader, and holds the distinction of being a Nuclear Weapon State, just like the P5 members. Its adherence to the ‘No First Use policy’ and deterrence against non-nuclear states has exhibited India’s hard power. Against this backdrop, India has also emerged as an undisputed leader of the developing world.
- India’s stance of a strategic neutrality during the cold war, as evident in its lead to the Non Aligned Movement (NAM) as well as its ability to follow the Panchsheel principles of peace and tranquility, non interference, and non-aggression in foreign policy align closely with the values enshrined in the UN Charter.
- Further, India is among the world’s fastest growing economies and is the third largest globally in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms. Besides, India is also a repository of immense soft power which gives it a moral high ground, in holding the distinction of being the world’s largest democracy.
It is in this regard, that four of the five permanent members too have, time and again, voiced their support for India’s permanent membership at the UNSC. New Delhi has also been elected as a non-permanent member of the council for eight terms and has left its indelible impact by negotiating some tough resolutions.
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