What does Russia mean by “broad consensus” when it speaks of reform of the United Nations Security Council?
Of course, we would prefer to reach a consensus on such an important issue as the Security Council reform. But we understand that it’s not realistic. That’s why Russia consistently insists that the decision on the Security Council’s enlargement should be based on the widest possible agreement. In our view, such an agreement envisages a more substantial political support for one or another decision rather than the legally required two-thirds of the votes. On this basis, we are ready to support any reasonable option of the Security Council’s enlargement, including its expansion in both categories of permanent and non-permanent members. The last and only expansion of the Security Council in the non-permanent category took place by a General Assembly vote (1963) followed by ratification. Given the 191 members of the U.N. today, how is a “broad consensus” possible now? We call for a continuation of consultations in order to reach the widest possible agreement. We are optimists and believe t
