By Janet Ekstract – NEW YORK – On Monday, at the Summit of the Future, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the U.S. supports starting negotiations on U.N. council reforms immediately. Blinken underscored the case made by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and numerous world leaders about fulfilling the primary goal of the United Nations which includes “support, reform and revitalization.” He added that the U.S. is in agreement that the U.N. needs crucial reforms, saying “That’s why we joined fellow member states in shaping and committing to a broad range of priorities in the Pact for the Future.” Blinken said those include forging the Digital Global Compact, signing onto the Declaration on Future Generations; enabling the United Nations and international institutions to better respond to shocks like pandemics and natural disasters that are now more severe due to the climate crisis He highlighted further priorities such as addressing “growing and diverse threats to international peace and security on land, the sea, the air, in outer space and in cyberspace; ensuring that universal human rights are respected equally online and offline; empowering women and girls across the UN’s efforts; reforming the UN Security Council to better represent the developing world and, more broadly, the world as it is today.”
Blinken said despite the fact that The Pact for the Future “does not include every priority, every reform that we believe the UN needs, but it is a significant step toward strengthening and evolving this institution that every member-state should get behind and work to achieve.” He said the U.S. “believes this should include two permanent seats for Africa, one rotating seat for Small Island Developing States, permanent representation for Latin America and the Caribbean.” Blinken added there should be “permanent seats for countries we’ve long endorsed: Germany, Japan, India.” The secretary of state underscored the crucial need for more to be done on U.N. reforms because “simply preserving the status quo is not an option. The United States is committed to adapting the U.N. system to reflect this world of today and tomorrow, no the one that existed in 1945.” Blinken cautioned that “we are and will remain resolutely opposed to revisionism” – adding that it’s not acceptable “to tear down, dilute, or fundamentally alter the core principles of the UN Charter – sovereignty, territorial integrity, independence” Additionally, he said the U.S. will “continue to affirm that no member-state has the right to redraw borders by force or repress their own people. We’ll continue to oppose the idea that nations can assert spheres of influence or dictate who other countries ally or partner with. We will push back fiercely against attempts to undermine the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and related international human rights treaties.”
