{"id":77759,"date":"2026-06-25T18:05:20","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T12:35:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=77759"},"modified":"2026-06-25T18:05:53","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T12:35:53","slug":"india-unsc-seat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/25-06-2026\/india-unsc-seat","title":{"rendered":"India\u2019s Rise Demands a Seat at the UNSC"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/ International Relations<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The need to make the UNSC more representative of contemporary geopolitical realities has brought renewed focus to India&#8217;s candidature for permanent membership.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Need for the Reforms in the UNSC<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Non-representative Council membership: <\/strong>When the UN was founded in<strong> 1945, <\/strong>the Council consisted of <strong>11 members out of 51 members <\/strong>of UN; around <strong>22%.<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Today, there are 193 member-states of the UN, and only 15 members of the Council \u2014 <strong>fewer than 8%.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Inability to Address Conflicts: <\/strong>The current composition of the council has an <strong>inability to address critical conflicts<\/strong> and maintain international peace and security.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Changes in World Order:<\/strong> The world has undergone significant<strong> changes since 1945 <\/strong>and the<strong> new realities need to be reflected<\/strong> in the permanent membership.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Veto Power: <\/strong>Currently, <strong>only the five permanent members <\/strong>hold veto powers and through its use have stalled action in the Council to address global challenges and conflicts such as in Ukraine and Gaza.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The remaining 10 nations in the Council are elected to sit as non-permanent members for two-year terms and <strong>do not have veto powers.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Im-balance of Power:<\/strong> The composition of the Council also gives undue weightage to the balance of power of those days.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Europe, accounting for <strong>5%<\/strong> of the world\u2019s population, controls <strong>33%<\/strong> of the seats in any given year (and that does not count Russia, another European power).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Legitimacy:<\/strong> The disproportionate power held by the five permanent members, particularly their veto power <strong>lead to a perception of unfairness and lack of legitimacy.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-background\" style=\"background-color:#fff2cc\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<p><strong>United Nations Security Council (UNSC)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It is one of the <strong>UN\u2019s six main organs<\/strong> and is aimed at maintaining international peace and security.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It held its first session on <strong>17th January 1946<\/strong> in Westminster, London.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Headquarters:<\/strong> New York City.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Membership: <\/strong>The Council is composed of 15 Members.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Five Permanent members with veto power: <\/strong>China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Ten Non Permanent members<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Election of Non Permanent members<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Each year the <strong>General Assembly elects five non-permanent members<\/strong> (out of 10 in total) for a <strong>two-year term.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The 10 non-permanent seats are distributed on a regional basis as follows:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Five for African and Asian States;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>One for the Eastern European States;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Two for the Latin American and Caribbean States;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Two for Western European and other States.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>To be elected to the Council, candidate countries need a <strong>two-thirds majority<\/strong> of ballots of the Member States that are present and voting in the Assembly.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The elections were held with each of the<strong> 193 member states casting its vote in a secret ballot.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>More than 50 United Nations Member States have never been Members of the Security Council.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>India<\/strong> last sat at the UN high table as a non-permanent member in <strong>2021-22.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Factors Strengthening India\u2019s Bid for a Permanent Seat<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Demographic Weight: <\/strong>India, as the world\u2019s largest democracy, represents one-sixth of its total population.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Economic Powerhouse:<\/strong> India ranks among the<strong> top three<\/strong> in purchasing power parity, with estimates placing its 2026 GDP PPP around<strong> $20 trillion.<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It influences global trade flows, technology supply chains, energy markets, and developmental finance.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Military advancement:<\/strong> India\u2019s armed forces are among the world\u2019s largest, and it is among the top defence spenders, with its 2026 defence budget reaching a record <strong>$86 billion.\u00a0<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>India is currently among the few countries with a credible <strong>nuclear triad<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Contribution to international peace and security:<\/strong> Its troop contribution has been one of the largest since <strong>1948<\/strong>, despite suffering one of the highest numbers of fatalities among UN peacekeeping contributors.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>This reflects India\u2019s commitment to <strong>multilateralism<\/strong> and its willingness to support UN mandates at all costs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Voice of the Global South:<\/strong> India demonstrated its leadership in the<strong> International Solar Alliance, Global Biofuels Alliance, G20 presidency, <\/strong>and the<strong> AI Impact Summit in the Global South<\/strong> etc.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>On maritime security<\/strong>, its role in the Indian Ocean shows a strong commitment to freedom of navigation and adherence to the <strong>UN Convention on the Law of the Sea<\/strong> and its institutions, such as the <strong>International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Challenges to India&#8217;s Bid<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Complex Amendment Process:<\/strong> Any reform requires approval by two-thirds of the UN General Assembly and ratification by all five permanent members. This makes institutional reform extremely difficult.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Chinese Opposition: <\/strong>China remains cautious about India&#8217;s elevation to permanent-member status and has often avoided explicit support for India&#8217;s permanent seat aspirations.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Coffee Club:<\/strong><strong>Uniting for Consensus (UfC)<\/strong> or Coffee Club, is a movement that developed in the 1990s in opposition to the possible expansion of permanent seats in the United Nations Security Council.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Under the leadership of Italy,<\/strong> it aims to counter the bids for permanent seats proposed by <strong>G4 nations (Brazil, Germany, India, and Japan).<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Concluding remarks<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A permanent seat for India at the Council would <strong>strengthen stability in Asia<\/strong> and beyond.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It would closely align the institution with changing geopolitical realities and establish the legitimacy of its decisions, offering the UNSC a chance to revamp itself.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/opinion\/columns\/indias-rise-demands-a-seat-at-the-unsc-10755475\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>IE<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong> Context <\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"> The need to make the UNSC more representative of contemporary geopolitical realities has brought renewed focus to India&#8217;s candidature for permanent membership. <\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong> Need for the Reforms in the UNSC <\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"> Non-representative Council membership: When the UN was founded in 1945, the Council consisted of 11 members out of 51 members of UN; around 22%. <\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"> Today, there are 193 member-states of the UN, and only 15 members of the Council \u2014 fewer than 8%.\u00a0 <\/li>\n<p><a href=\" https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/25-06-2026\/india-unsc-seat \" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-77759","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77759","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77759"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77759\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":77761,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77759\/revisions\/77761"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77759"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77759"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77759"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}