United Nations, April 24
India’s External Affairs Ministry Secretary Sibi George met Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and discussed reforms of the international organisation raising the voice of the Global South.
At their meeting here on Thursday, George reiterated India’s strong commitment to multilateralism, which Guterres has been emphasising even as it is under stress, India’s Permanent Mission said in a post on X.
They also discussed New Delhi’s initiatives for enhancing the development of the Global South through programmes like the India-UN Development Partnership Fund, the mission said.
During his tightly-packed visit here this week that started with paying tribute to the statue of Mahatma Gandhi at the UN complex, George met several UN officials and diplomats from several countries.
India is historically the biggest contributor to UN peacekeeping operations, and it figured in many of his interactions with UN officials, including Atul Khare, Under-Secretary-General for Operational Support, and Khaled Khiari, the Assistant Secretary-General in the Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations.
With Khare, he reiterated India’s steadfast commitment to peacekeeping operations.
The UN is facing a financial crisis, and it came up for discussion with the UN’s finance chief, Chandramouli Ramanathan, the Controller and Assistant Secretary-General.
They discussed the overall financial situation of the UN as well as financing peacekeeping operations.
George and Guy Ryder, the Under Secretary General for Policy, talked about the reform of the UN, and the UN80 Initiative to make the organisation relevant to the global challenges as it turns 80.
George also represented India at meetings here during the week.
At the candidates' forum for those aspiring to succeed Guterres, he asked Michelle Bachelet, the former UN High Commission for Human Rights, about her approach to achieving the developmental goals of the Global South.
She said the member states should make achieving the development goals a political priority and ensure finances are available for it.
George made the case for the need for more representation of the Global South, particularly in the permanent category, during a meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiations for Security Council reforms.
With session’s focus on Africa, which was mostly under the colonial yoke dealt a historic injustice when the UN was founded, George spoke of India’s support for the continent’s claim for permanent seats in the Security Council.
He also pointed out the similarities between the approaches of India and Africa to Council reforms.
At the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Forum on Financing for Development, George called for the reform of the international finance system to make it more development-oriented, fair, and inclusive.
International finance should be made more responsive to the voice of the Global South, which grapples with a $4 trillion gap in funds needed for achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
