China bats for ‘package solution’ on India’s permanent membership at UNSC

China on Wednesday said that there should be a “package solution” to the matter of granting India permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council, PTI reported. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin’s comments came after the two countries on Tuesday held bilateral consultations on matters related to the UN top body.

Wenbin said that China’s principled position on India’s inclusion as a permanent member was that it supported increase in representation of developing countries in the UN Security Council, PTI reported.

“China supports UNSC reforms in a manner that increases the authority and efficacy of the UNSC, increases the representation and voice of developing countries so that small and medium-sized countries have a greater opportunity to participate in the decision making of the UNSC,” he said. “It should be done through the widest possible democratic consultation and seek a package solution that takes into account the interests and concerns of all parties.”

China is one of the five permanent members of the UNSC and has been using its veto power to block India’s efforts to become a permanent member of the body. The other four permanent members – United States, United Kingdom, France and Russia – have expressed their backing for New Delhi’s membership.

On January 1, India started its two-year tenure as a non-permanent member at the UNSC. In August, India is scheduled to serve as the president of the body, according to PTI.

On Tuesday, during the meeting with China, India briefed on the “priorities during its UNSC tenure”, the Hindustan Times reported, quoting the external affairs ministry.

“Both sides discussed a wide range of issues on the UNSC agenda,” the ministry statement said. The two sides also “agreed to continue their engagement on key issues” on the Security Council’s agenda, according to the Hindustan Times.