New BRICS members reluctant to support India and Brazil’s claim to the permanent seat of the UN Security Council

India’s hopes of getting support from new members of the BRICS bloc for its candidature as a permanent member of the UN Security Council may not be fulfilled anytime soon as countries like Egypt and Ethiopia do not seem ready to meet expectations, sources following the case have said.

“When new members were admitted to the BRICS grouping last year, a formula was introduced suggesting that all new members had to agree to the ambitions of India, Brazil and South Africa to become permanent members of the UN Security Council. But some of the new members, such as Egypt and Ethiopia, are now protesting against it as they themselves are aspirants for membership of the UN Security Council,” said a source following the case. business line.

In August 2023, the BRICS group, consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, was expanded with invitations to five new members: Egypt, Iran, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Ethiopia. They were formally included in the BRICS bloc in January 2024.

“Last year, when existing BRICS members discussed the terms under which new members would be installed, it was decided that supporting UN Security Council reforms, including supporting the candidacy of India, Brazil and South Africa as permanent members , would be one of the most important. guidelines for participation,” the source said.

The 2023 Johannesburg Declaration, issued after the BRICS Summit, mentioned Brazil, India and South Africa, while endorsing UN Security Council reforms through expanded representation of developing countries.

“We support a comprehensive reform of the UN, including the Security Council, with the aim of making it more democratic, representative, effective and efficient, and to increase the representation of developing countries in the membership of the Council so that it can respond adequately the prevailing problems. global challenges and support the legitimate aspirations of emerging and developing countries from Africa, Asia and Latin America, including Brazil, India and South Africa, to play a greater role in international affairs, especially in the United Nations, including the Security Council.” said the Johannesburg statement.

But some new members have balked at backing India, Brazil and South Africa exclusively for UN Security Council membership, saying the condition was never mentioned to them in black and white. “It now appears that the letter officially sent to them regarding the conditions and guidelines for their joining the BRICS did not explicitly call for support for India, Brazil and South Africa. New members such as Egypt and Ethiopia say they are also legitimate candidates to become members of the UN Security Council and that they cannot agree to support only three countries,” the official said.

It will therefore be a challenge for the three countries and Russia, which will host the BRICS summit in Kazan in October 2024, to bring new members on board so that a common position on the reform of the UN Security Council and the membership expansion could be included in the joint statement.

Reforms of the UN Security Council and expansion of its membership, with India as a permanent member, remain one of India’s key priorities in all its bilateral and multilateral engagements, including at the highest levels, according to the Ministry of External Affairs.

“A new assessment of the members’ position on the reforms and membership of the UN Security Council will take place next month at the meeting of the foreign ministers of the BRICS countries in Nizhny Novgorod,” the source added.