New York [US], September 27 (ANI): The Foreign Ministers of G4 countries (India, Brazil, Germany and Japan), met on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday to discuss the prospects for reforms of the UN Security Council, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) shared in an official statement on Saturday.

The Foreign Ministers of the G4 countries- Mauro Vieira, Foreign Minister of Brazil; Johann Wadephul, Federal Foreign Minister of Germany; S Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs of India and Iwaya Takeshi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, met on the margins of the 80th Session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly to assess the state of play and discuss prospects for reform of the UN Security Council, the statement said.

It further noted that the G4 Ministers emphasized that, amid increasing instability in the international order and with the UN--the centre of multilateralism, increasingly incapable of fulfilling its role--it is crucial to reform the Security Council at the earliest to truly reflect the contemporary geopolitical realities, thereby enhancing its representativeness, legitimacy, effectiveness, and efficiency.

The G4 Ministers underscored that the expansion of the UN Security Council in both permanent and non-permanent categories of membership is essential to Security Council reform, and that this position is supported by a majority of Member States.

The G4 Ministers concurred on the need to enhance the role and participation of developing countries, and those significantly contributing to international peace and security, in the Security Council, in both membership categories.

In this regard, the G4 Ministers reiterated the importance of improving the representation of the underrepresented and unrepresented regions and groups, such as Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean, in both membership categories. The G4 Ministers reaffirmed their strong support for the Common African Position (CAP) as enshrined in the Ezulwini Consensus and the Sirte Declaration.

The G4 ministerial joint statement highlighted how a comprehensive reform of the Security Council is in the best interest of all.

The G4 Ministers reaffirmed the willingness and capability of the G4 countries, as democracies sharing common political values including respect for the rule of law, full adherence to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and commitment to multilateralism, to shoulder the Security Council's primary responsibility of maintaining international peace and security. The G4 Ministers also reiterated their mutual support for each other's candidacies as new permanent members of a reformed Security Council.

Reviewing the work of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly, while appreciating that presentation of models by Member States and groups continued from the previous session, the statement noted that the G4 Ministers reiterated their strong concern over the continued absence of concrete progress on UNSC reform in the Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN) format.

Against the backdrop of the 80th anniversary of the foundation of the United Nations, the G4 Ministers underscored that they would actively participate in discussions during the 80th session of the UN General Assembly.

The G4 Ministers expressed their intention to cooperate closely among themselves and in partnership with other groups, taking into account the urgent need for reform, with a view to developing a consolidated model, as recognized by world leaders last year at the UN, leading to text-based negotiations. The G4 Ministers also emphasized the importance of the IGN's adherence to the standard working method and procedures of the UN, and the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly, underscoring the fact that consensus is not a decision-making requirement.

Furthermore, the G4 Ministers reiterated that discussions on Security Council reform need not be confined to the IGN and expressed their willingness to engage with the wider UN membership on this issue in other forums, including the UN General Assembly.

The statement concluded by highlighting that the G4 Ministers urged the international community to engage wholeheartedly in efforts during the 80th session of the UN General Assembly and committed themselves to further reaching out and working in good faith with, the wider UN membership to advance UN Security Council reform, as part of a comprehensive reform of the United Nations. (ANI)