India (Commonwealth Union)_ According to the statement from the Maldives foreign ministry in Male, the Maldives will support India’s bid for a non-permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council for the term 2028-2029. The ministry also expressed confidence in New Delhi’s strong and effective leadership in upholding international peace and security. Last month, India announced its candidacy for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council (UNSC) for the 2028-2029 term.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar made the announcement at the United Nations saying, “I am glad to inform you that we have declared our candidature for our next tenure at the Security Council for 2028-29”. Following Jaishankar’s recent visit to the Maldives, the foreign ministry released the statement saying, “The Government of Maldives has decided to support India’s candidature to a non-permanent seat of the United Nations Security Council, for the term 2028-2029”.
The election for the non permanent membership of the UNSC for the 2028-2029 term will be held at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly in June 2027. The statement further added that the decision to endorse India’s UNSC candidature was made after India’s Minister of External Affairs, Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar visited Maldives during 18-19 January 2023. The purpose of Jaishankar’s three-day trip to the Maldives and Sri Lanka was to increase bilateral interaction with India’s two most important maritime neighbors.
During his visit to the Maldives, Jaishankar held meetings with President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih as well as Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid over a range of bilateral cooperation-related topics. He also inaugurated several projects supported by India and finalized a number of bilateral cooperation agreements to further strengthen the ties between the two nations. The statement further added that the Maldives’ strong support for India is a result of the two nations’ long-standing close friendship and great links of bilateral ties. It also lauded India for consistently displaying strong and effective leadership in ensuring world peace and security.
According to the statement, “India has also been a strong proponent of the values and principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter. The Government of Maldives is confident that India will be a voice for all developing countries on the Security Council and will continue to make meaningful contributions towards the global discourse on peace and security in the years to come”. India’s tenure on the UNSC for 2021-2022 concluded on December 31. India has served in the Council for a total of eight terms: 1950-1951; 1967-1968; 1972-1973; 1977-1978; 1984-1985; 1991-2012; and 2011-2012.
Last month, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held a meeting with the President of the 77th session of the General Assembly Csaba Krosi to discuss India’s term in the Security Council and its G20 chairmanship objectives. Jaishankar also presided over two landmark events on counter-terrorism and reformed multilateralism, organized under India’s current presidency of the United Nations Security Council, before the country’s two-year term as an elected member of the powerful 15-nation group came to a close last month.
India acquired the monthly rotating presidency of the Security Council on December 1, marking the second time following August 2021 during its two-year term as an elected UNSC member. India has been in the vanguard of efforts to reform the Security Council, which has remained highly polarized in its response to ongoing concerns. Additionally, New Delhi has stated that the Council’s current status does not reflect the geopolitical realities of today, and that its legitimacy is in jeopardy if growing nations such as India do not have a permanent seat at the UNSC table.
