A Win At UN High Table

Context: India’s recent presidency of the UNSC has delivered outcomes and responded in real-time to Afghanistan.

India’s achievements as a current UNSC chair

• Highest level of engagement: What set our 2021 presidency apart was the highest-level engagement and leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
• Delivery of the highest number of outcomes: The Indian presidency delivered the highest number of outcomes (14).
  • Five full-fledged resolutions on the situation in Afghanistan, Somalia, the Middle East, Mali and the UN peacekeeping operations,
  • Four presidential statements (PRST), including on West Africa and Sudan.
  • Five press statements — three responding in real time to developments in Afghanistan, including the Kabul airport terrorist attack.
• Three signature themes:
  1. Maritime security: It was pathbreaking in evolving a holistic concept of maritime security, the role of UNCLOS, the freedom of navigation, a sensitive topic given China’s muscle-flexing in the South China Sea.
  2. Peacekeeping: The event on “Protecting the protectors: technology and peacekeeping” resulted in the first-ever resolution on accountability for crimes against peacekeepers and the first PRST on technology upgradation for peacekeepers.
  3. Counter-terrorism:
     • It brought focus on the early conclusion of the Comprehensive Convention against International Terrorism and India’s eight-point action plan — all to reinforce the just revised UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy.
     • It identified individuals and entities designated by the UNSC resolution 1267 — which, for India, includes the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) — and the importance of combating terrorism in Afghanistan, noting relevant commitments of the Taliban.
     • Russia and China also wanted a balanced approach to include their terrorists of concern, including the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM).

• Response to Afghanistan: The UNSC Resolution 2593 adopted on August 30 responded to serious concerns about Taliban-ruled Afghanistan becoming a haven for terrorist groups and posing a threat to the neighbours.
  1. Humanitarian actions: Other major benchmarks included the Taliban allowing the safe evacuation of foreigners. The Taliban was asked to uphold human rights, including those of women, children and minorities — which in India’s case bears on the well-being of Hindu and Sikh Afghans.

Conclusion: All UNSC members praised India’s presidency and acknowledged the value added by India in building bridges in the midst of polarised UNSC dynamics, strengthening its claim for permanent membership.