Pakistan has called for expansion of the Security Council in a manner that allows for more non-permanent seats representing regional groups.

Speaking in the intergovernmental negotiations on Security Council Reform, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UN, Dr Maleeha Lodhi said the Council needed to be expanded in a manner that gives a greater chance of representation to the regional groups that are under-represented due to the increase in the number of Member States.

She argued that the expansion was needed to meet the objective of a more democratic, accountable, representative, transparent and effective Security Council.

The envoy noted that over the last fifty years, the number of new Member States did not correspond equally to all regional groups.

Ambassador Lodhi pointed out that the permanent members do not represent any region nor were nominated in the Charter because they belonged to a particular region. “Their continued presence in this category does not require any endorsement from their regional group or, for that matter, a vote by any of us in the General Assembly”.

That is why, she said, expansion of seats in the non-permanent category would assure fair and adequate regional representation.