New Delhi: United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who arrived in New Delhi on Friday to attend the two-day G20 Summit, said he was “not very hopeful” of a peace solution to the Russia-Ukraine war in the "immediate future", news agency PTI reported. He, however, said that the global peace organisation was thankful to all the nations that tried to do “everything possible” for the conflict to end.
Addressing a press conference a day ahead of the summit, Guterres said, “I am not very hopeful to have a peace solution in the immediate future. I believe the two parties are still decided to move on with the conflict. But, we need to pay tribute to all those that with good intention tried to do everything possible for this dramatic situation to find an end.”
Responding to a question on whether it was the failure of the United Nations that the issue of the Russia-Ukraine war was coming in the way of a joint declaration at the G20 Summit, the UN chief said it was easy to blame the global peace organisation for the action of the member nations, but “it was not the UN that invaded Ukraine, it was not the UN that created the conditions for this conflict.”
"The responsibilities of member states must be assumed by member states and let's not make the UN the scapegoat of the failures or of the negative actions that are committed by member states," Guterres said.
Flagging concerns about the rising global tensions, the UN chief in his opening remarks said, “Divisions are growing, tensions are flaring up, and trust is eroding – which together raise the spectre of fragmentation, and ultimately, confrontation. This fracturing would be deeply concerning in the best of times – but in our times, it spells catastrophe.”
Noting that the international financial architecture was “outdated, dysfunctional, and unfair”, Guterres said the world needs “effective international institutions rooted in 21st century realities.”
"The global financial architecture is outdated, dysfunctional, and unfair. It requires deep, structural reform. And the same can be said about the United Nations Security Council," the UN secretary-general said, adding, "We need effective international institutions rooted in 21st century realities and based on the UN Charter and international law."
‘Fully Understand India’s Aspirations’: Guterres On New Delhi’s Bid For Seat At UN High Table
Amid India having made no bones about its aspirations to a permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), Guterres said he “fully understands” India's aspirations for a seat at the UN high table but asserted that it was for the member nations to take a call on the reform of the global body, PTI reported.
In an interview to PTI, Guterres said, "It's not for me to define who will be or who should be in the Security Council, that's for member states (to decide) but I believe that what we need is to have a Security Council that represents today's world."
"The present composition of the Security Council represents the world after the Second World War. Today's world is different. As you mentioned, India is today the largest country with the largest population in the world," he said, adding, "So, I fully understand India's aspirations in this regard. It's not for me to judge, it's for member states, but I believe, and I repeat, we need to adjust the composition of the Security Council to the realities of today's world. I'm sure that you know those realities quite well."