UNSC expansion - logjam continues

The G-4 countries seeking permanent membership of the UN Security Council have failed to narrow down their differences with a group led by Pakistan and Italy on the expansion of the world body's top organ.

However, the Group of Four comprising India, Japan, Germany and Brazil continued intensive consultations with potential co-sponsors and other member states on the framework resolution they plan to move on expansion of the UNSC and expect to maintain their deadline of tabling it by third week of June.

A meeting between G-4 and the Pakistan and Italy-led 'United for Consensus', which opposes expansion in the permanent membership, failed to narrow down their differences on Friday.

At the meeting convened by UN General Assembly President Jean Ping, the G-4 maintained that UFC had offered nothing new which could form the basis for a discussion.

Ping told reporters after the meeting that he had urged both groups not to take any precipitate action till June 21 when he plans to start consultations on the draft document drawn up by him to be presented to the summit of world leaders at the United Nations scheduled for mid-September.

Diplomats of G-4 said Ping's suggestion was that their resolution should not be put to vote till June 21

but that would not prevent them from tabling it.

China, on whose support UFC -- also known as Coffee Club -- is counting, did not attend the meeting despite being invited by Ping.

Ping said he would like the two groups to continue consultations with the aim of arriving at some consensus.

He rejected the suggestion that the issue be remitted to the world leaders' summit for a decision, saying what could they do in three days on this contentious issue which is being debated for 11 years.

The document drawn up by Ping, which is based on the report of the high-level panel appointed by Secretary General Kofi Annan, does not advocate any particular model -- that is whether the expansion of the Council should be in both
permanent and non-permanent categories or only in the non-permanent category.

The panel had recommended two models, one of which called for expansion in both permanent and non-permanent categories and the other only in the non- permanent category.

But Ping's document only endorses comprehensive reform of the Security Council to make it more broadly representative and more transparent and to enhance the legitimacy of its decisions and its effectiveness.