Claiming India’s rightful space in the United Nations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his 21-minute address to the 75th session of United Nations General Assembly, said that there was “a serious need for introspection for the United Nations”. Modi said that the need of the hour was “reform in the responses, in the processes, and in the very character of the United Nations”.
The prime minister said the people of India have been waiting for a long time “for the process for the reforms of the United Nations to get completed”. He added, “Today, people of India are concerned whether this reform-process will ever reach its logical conclusion. For how long will India be kept out of the decision-making structures of the United Nations?”
India had in its limited capacity done so much over the years, Prime Minister Modi said, from building international solar alliance, sending its troops to over 50 international peacekeeping missions to distributing essential medicines and supplies during the outbreak of Coronavirus epidemic.
“Even during these very difficult times of the raging pandemic, the pharmaceutical industry of India has sent essential medicines to more than 150 countries. As the largest vaccine producing country of the world, I want to give one more assurance to the global community today. India’s vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity in fighting this crisis,” Modi assured the world through his address.
He said that India was moving ahead with phase 3 clinical trials. “India will also help all the countries in enhancing their cold chain and storage capacities for the delivery of the vaccines,” Modi said.
For the last eight months, Modi asked, when the world has been struggling with Coronavirus, “where is the United Nations in this joint fight against the pandemic? Where is its effective response?”
While the UN has done so much, Modi said, in avoiding a third world war, for instance, but he added that the world has since seen so many wars and civil wars. “Therefore, the international community today is faced with a very important question: Whether the character of the institution, constituted in the prevailing circumstances of 1945, is relevant even today?” Modi asked.
“When we were strong,” Modi said in his address to the UNGA, “we were never a threat to the world, when we were weak, we never become a burden on the world…Your Excellency, How long would a country have to wait particularly when the transformational changes happening in that country affect a large part of the world?”
In what may be read as reference to some strategic alliances India has struck after the violent face-off with China in Ladakh, Modi said, “Any gesture of friendship by India towards one country is not directed against any third country. When India strengthens its development partnership, it is not with any malafide intent of making the partner country dependent or hapless.”
Comments
0 comment