00:00Pakistan has decided not to spare this forum either from their characteristic misuse of August
00:06UN platforms for their divisive political interests. I'd like to remind Pakistan that
00:10being a member of the UN Security Council is a huge responsibility. It's not a forum for peddling
00:15biased and false narratives. Jammu and Kashmir was, is and will always remain an integral and
00:20inalienable part of India. Any assertions to the contrary are baseless, deboid of and
00:26inconsistent with historical facts. Mr. President, at the outset, I'd like to
00:31place on record our heartiest congratulations to the five newly elected members of the UN
00:37Security Council for the 2027-28 term, Austria, Kyrgyzstan, Portugal, Trinidad and Tobago and
00:45Zimbabwe. We look forward to working with each of you and wish you all success.
00:51Mr. President, today's meeting gains particular salience as consideration of the Security Council
00:57annual report by the General Assembly is explicitly provided for in the UN Charter.
01:02As a principal organ of the UN, the Security Council has been primarily tasked with the
01:08onerous responsibility of maintenance of international peace and security. Therefore, India reiterates
01:14that today's discussion is not to be treated as a purely procedural matter against its background,
01:20of the UN Charter.
01:21I'd like to make the following points. First, submission and consideration of the Security
01:26Council annual report to the General Assembly offers a wonderful platform for the wider UN
01:33membership to reflect upon and share their views regarding the functioning of the Council
01:38in the past year. Annual reports of the Security Council, therefore, needs to be analytical
01:44in nature. It should not be a compilation of facts. Areas of improvement and gaps, if any,
01:51with regard to discharging Council's core mandate of maintenance of international peace and security
01:56must feature prominently in the report.
01:59Second, the annual report follows a standard template. Inclusion of several significant elements
02:04could enrich the value of the report and help serve its purpose better. Please allow me to offer
02:10a specific example. Peacekeeping is an important tool available at the disposal of the Security
02:16Council to fulfill its critical responsibilities. However, the standard template of the report
02:21largely excludes finer points pertaining to operational modalities, associated challenges, the review
02:29of respective mandates, etc., with regard to peacekeeping. Third, the annual report discussion in the General
02:36Assembly is usually held towards the end of the first half of the subsequent year. The world witnesses considerable
02:43changes during the six-month period. 2026 has been no different in this regard. Therefore, India urges that this
02:50aspect be accorded due importance and the report may be submitted for consideration of the General Assembly in the early
02:56part of the year itself. Mr. President, the unarranted reference by Pakistan to a matter strictly internal to India, the
03:03Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, has compelled me to respond. Pakistan has decided not to spare this
03:10forum either from their characteristic misuse of August UN platforms for their divisive political interests.
03:17Abuse of its presence on the Security Council by Pakistan, including through the circulation of several misinformed
03:23and misleading communications, also testifies to this counterproductive approach. I'd like to remind Pakistan that being a
03:30member of the UN Security Council is a huge responsibility. It's not a forum for peddling biased and false narratives.
03:37I'd like to make it loud and clear. Jammu and Kashmir was, is and will always remain an integral and
03:43inalienable part of India.
03:44Any assertions to the contrary are baseless, devoid of and inconsistent with historical facts. Empty rhetoric and hollow
03:52claims by Pakistan would not change this fundamental reality. In the interest of time of the wider UN membership, I
03:58would
03:58not delve any further into this. Mr. President, finally we all recognize the importance of reform of the Security Council
04:05to
04:06make it fit for purpose to handle contemporary and future challenges that we face. The current structure reflects geopolitical
04:12realities of 1945. Retaining the status quo has so far not enabled effective functioning of the Security Council
04:19and cannot do so in future. The marginal reform in the 1960s that expanded only the non-permanent
04:26category has not changed the fundamental mode of functioning of the Security Council in any impactful
04:32manner. Expansion of both permanent and non-permanent categories is central to implementing real and meaningful
04:38reform. In closing, it is India's hope that greater importance is attached to the formulation of the
04:44annual report and its consideration thereof by the UN General Assembly so as to accurately capture the
04:51spirit of Article 24-3 of the UN Charter. I thank you Mr. President.
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