China described a resolution by Brazil, Germany, India and Japan to expand the UN Security Council -- and hopefully give them permanent seats -- as "dangerous" and hinted it would use its veto power if necessary to block final approval.
The language used by China's UN ambassador, Wang Guangya (
Wang made clear in an interview that China opposes any move to expand the council now because the 191 UN member states are deeply divided.
Brazil, Germany, India and Japan -- known as the Group of Four or G-4 -- circulated the resolution on May 16 and have indicated they will put it to a vote by the General Assembly this month.
"I think what has been proposed by G-4 is very dangerous, so as far as China is concerned, we will work with others to see that this will not happen," Wang said in an interview on Tuesday.
He said the resolution will split the UN membership, and if the G-4 push for a vote "the whole atmosphere in this house is being undermined, is being destroyed."
Every UN member also has a different opinion on who should be the permanent members, he said.
China has opposed Japan's bid for a permanent seat, complaining about what many Asians consider Japan's lack of atonement for World War II abuses.
The result, Wang said, will be that UN members will not be able to discuss other more important issues that Secretary-General Kofi Annan wants included in a major overhaul of the UN to meet the global threats and challenges of the 21st century -- from a new peacebuilding commission and human rights council to new measures to reduce poverty and promote education.
After 10 years of seemingly endless debate, Annan told UN member states in March that he wants a decision on council expansion before September, when he has invited world leaders to a summit to consider restructuring the UN.
He suggested that if consensus wasn't possible, the General Assembly president should consider calling a vote.
There is wide support for expanding the Security Council, whose composition reflects the post-World War II era when the UN was created, to represent the global realities today.
But the size and membership of an expanded council remains contentious.
The G-4 resolution needs to be approved by two-thirds of the 191 member states to be adopted, but that's only a first step.
New permanent members then would have to be elected by similar two-thirds votes.
But the most difficult step to take is a final resolution that changes the UN Charter, which not only requires a two-thirds vote but also approval by the Security Council's five permanent members who wield veto power -- the US, Russia, China, Britain and France.
Wang said that "if it comes to the last stage, I'm sure our legislature would take into account the feelings of others -- and I don't think they will take a very positive action on this."
But council diplomats said that over time, positions change -- as witnessed by the last council expansion in 1965, when some key opponents eventually voted "yes."
A ship that appears to be taking on the identity of a scrapped gas carrier exited the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, showing how strategies to get through the waterway are evolving as the Middle East war progresses. The vessel identifying as liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier Jamal left the Strait on Friday morning, ship-tracking data show. However, the same tanker was also recorded as having beached at an Indian demolition yard in October last year, where it is being broken up, according to market participants and port agent’s reports. The ship claiming to be Jamal is likely a zombie vessel that
Japan is to downgrade its description of ties with China from “one of its most important” in an annual diplomatic report, according to a draft reviewed by Reuters, as relations with Beijing worsen. This year’s Diplomatic Bluebook, which Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government is expected to approve next month, would instead describe China as an important neighbor and the relationship as “strategic” and “mutually beneficial.” The draft cites a series of confrontations with Beijing over the past year, including export controls on rare earths, radar lock-ons targeting Japanese military aircraft and increased pressure around Taiwan. The shift in tone underscores a deterioration
LAW CONSTRAINTS: The US has been pressing allies to send warships to open the Strait, but Tokyo’s military actions are limited under its postwar pacifist constitution Japan could consider deploying its military for minesweeping in the Strait of Hormuz if a ceasefire is reached in the war on Iran, Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Toshimitsu Motegi said yesterday. “If there were to be a complete ceasefire, hypothetically speaking, then things like minesweeping could come up,” Motegi said. “This is purely hypothetical, but if a ceasefire were established and naval mines were creating an obstacle, then I think that would be something to consider.” Japan’s military actions are limited under its postwar pacifist constitution, but 2015 security legislation allows Tokyo to use its Self-Defense Forces overseas if an attack,
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) yesterday faced a regional election battle in Rhineland-Palatinate, now held by the center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD). Merz’s CDU has enjoyed a narrow poll lead over the SPD — their coalition partners at the national level — who have ruled the mid-sized state for 35 years. Polling third is the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), which spells a greater threat to the two centrist parties in several state elections in September in the country’s ex-communist east. The picturesque state of Rhineland-Palatinate, bordering France, Belgium and Luxembourg and with a population of about 4 million,
RSS