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75th UNGA – Press release – Virtual meeting of the Ministers of the Countries belonging to the “Uniting for Consensus” (UfC) Group

PRESS RELEASE

Ministers of the Countries belonging to the “Uniting for Consensus” (UfC) Group held a virtual meeting today to assess the state of the UN Security Council reform process.

While profoundly impacted by the tragic Covid-19 pandemic that allowed only two meetings to take place, the last Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN) on the reform of the Security Council confirmed the commitment of the membership to the reform process. At the same time, it showed the persistence of diverging views on key aspects of reform, such as the veto and the categories of membership.

Strongly committed to reaching a consensual solution to this longstanding issue, UfC Ministers reaffirmed that the IGN remains the sole legitimate setting for discussion on Security Council reform, in full transparency and with the participation of all UN Member States.

In this sense, UfC Ministers reiterated the need and the urgency for the UN membership to agree on a reform model capable of making the future, expanded Security Council more democratic, accountable, representative, transparent and effective: a reformed Security Council whose increased legitimacy to the membership and to the public would nurture trust in the United Nations and strengthen multilateralism.

UfC Ministers therefore called upon all Member States to continue to engage constructively in seeking a fair and equitable compromise solution that meets the collective interest of all 193 Members of the UN, garnering the widest possible political support from the membership.

Consistent with their approach, the UfC Ministers agreed to continue working to support the aspirations of African countries for a more equitable representation of their Continent in a reformed Security Council, as well as the aspirations of other developing Regions, of small States and SIDS.

UfC Ministers confirmed their opposition to enlarging the Security Council to new permanent members: an effective and democratic Security Council cannot be reformed by the addition of new members with exclusive national rights and unequal privileges.

Encouraged by the growing understanding of their approach, the UfC Ministers reaffirmed their full commitment to engage in good faith in constructive discussions with all the Member States in order to achieve an effective UN reform to the benefit to the whole UN membership.

New York, September 28, 2020

 

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation – Press release (link)