India asks UNSC to enforce resolutions on countering terrorism

United Nations, Oct 24: India has asked the UN Security Council to enforce its resolutions on countering terrorism "without exception" and include a "mandatory time-bound reporting" on compliance to stem the ever-widening spiral of violence.

India's Ambassador to the UN Asoke Mukerji while speaking at an open debate on the "Working Methods of the Security Council", highlighted the shortfalls in the Council's methods in drawing up mandates of UN peacekeeping operations and the impact of its working methods which dilute the international effort against terrorism.

"We strongly believe that the Council must seriously and transparently take measures available to it under the Charter to require member states of implement its Resolutions on countering terrorism without exception. To condone the use of terrorism on account of perceived political purposes is counterproductive, and will engulf more and more member states in an ever-widening spiral of violence and destruction," Mukerji said.

"We therefore specifically call for the Council's working methods to include a mandatory time-bound reporting requirement to the wider membership of the United Nations on implementation of Security Council Resolutions on countering terrorism," he said.

Mukerji stressed that terrorism is fast emerging as the single-most important challenge to the maintenance of international peace and security.

He called for a beginning on the proposal by having a report to the wider membership of the UN with respect to the latest resolution adopted by the Council last month.

One of the provisions in the resolution calls on member states to assist in criminal investigations relating to the financing or support of terrorist acts and foreign fighters.

Other provisions were on improving cooperation among nations to take steps to stop the travel of foreign terrorists and to share information to identify them.

"Our concern is that the current working methods, which have been provisionally applied since the Council was established, have deviated from the clear provisions, and indeed, objectives of the UN Charter, making the Council ineffective and unrepresentative of the world as it is on 23 October 2014," Mukerji said.

On the issue of peacekeeping mandates, Mukerji criticised the actions of the world body, saying perceptions available within the United Nations membership on how to actually use peacekeeping to bring about peace have been sacrificed in favour of "enforcing the will of a small privileged minority within the Council to look at peacekeepers as instruments to wage war."

PTI