Pakistan opposes UN Security Council’s permanent seat to India

Pakistan on Thursday reiterated its opposition to grant permanent UN Security Council’s seat to India and insisted on reforms to make the forum more democratic.

Pakistan contested the Indian move after U.S. President Barrack Obama announced support for India to seek permanent Security Council’s seat during his recent visit.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said India does not “qualify to become a permanent member of UNSC because of its violations of UN resolutions”.

“India is in violation of the UN Security Council resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir and the right of people of Kashmir to self- determination,” the spokesperson said at her weekly press briefing.

The spokesperson, however, said Pakistan supported reforms in the United Nations as “it is in the interest of everyone to seek more democratic, effective and credible mechanism of the maintenance of international peace and security through a comprehensive reform of the Security Council.”

To a question about the nuclear agreement between the United States and India, Aslam said Pakistan has shown serious concerns over the deal as it would badly affect the stability in the region.

“On the conventional side, India’s massive acquisition of weapons further complicates the regional strategic stability,” she said.

She said India’s defence spending has increased by 12 percent in 2014-15 and stands at 38.35 billion U.S. dollars. “India has been the top buyers of arms for the last three years.”

“In this backdrop, the U.S.-India 10-year defence agreement can only add to the conventional asymmetry and hence strategic instability,” the spokesperson said.

She said Pakistan has been proposing a three pronged Strategic Restraint Regime to India that include conflict resolution, nuclear and missile restraint and conventional balance.

“Pakistan firmly believes that confidence-building and arms reduction in the regional and sub-regional context to be of paramount importance,” she added.