India seeks to welcome Palestine as UN member

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Saturday his country looked forward to welcoming a state of Palestine as a full member of the United Nations.

‘India is steadfast in its support for the Palestinian people’s struggle for a sovereign, independent, viable and united state of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital,’ Singh told the UN General Assembly.

Calling the unresolved Palestinian issue ‘a source of great instability and violence,’ the Indian leader added that a Palestinian state should live ‘within secure and recognizable borders side by side and at peace with Israel.’

‘We look forward to welcoming Palestine as an equal member of the United Nations,’ Singh told the assembly, a day after the Palestinians formally asked the United Nations to grant them full UN membership as a state.

India is one of the current 10 non-permanent members of the UN Security Council, which along with the five permanent members, will consider the bid.

The Security Council is to meet on Monday to discuss the request made on Friday by Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas.

The Palestinians have to win nine out of the 15 council votes for the request to be approved, but the United States has already said it will veto any such move.

Singh also called for the United Nations and its main bodies to be ‘revitalized and reformed.’

‘The reform and expansion of the Security Council are essential if it is to reflect contemporary reality,’ the Indian prime minister said.

‘Early reform of the Security Council must be pursued with renewed vigor and urgently enacted,’ he argued, saying it would enhance the council’s ‘credibility and effectiveness.’

While India — home to 1.2 billion people — is currently a rotating member of the Security Council, it has been seeking more permanent representation either as a country or for the Asian region to match its growing influence.