India assails ‘disguised veto’ at UN Security Council anti-terrorism panel protecting Pak-based terrorists

India has assailed the secretive “subterranean” working of the Security Council sanctions committee on terrorism, accusing it of allowing a system of “disguised veto” in blocking the listing of Pakistan-linked terrorists. “For genuine, evidence-based listing proposals for globally sanctioned terrorists to be blocked. without giving any justification, is uncalled for and smacks of doublespeak when it comes to the council’s commitment in tackling the challenge of terrorism,” India’s Permanent Representative Ruchira Kamboj said on Monday.

At UNGA, India calls for “immediate de-escalation” in Gaza; reiterates two-state stand

India has called for an “immediate de-escalation and eschewing of violence” in Gaza but stopped short of specifically mentioning a ceasefire, which is now a broad demand across the UN but opposed by Israel. “In order to arrive at a lasting solution, we urge for an immediate de-escalation and eschewing of violence,” India’s Permanent Representative Ruchira Kamboj told the UN General Assembly (UNGA) on Monday.

At United Nations, India decries primacy of open markets in food grains

India has decried the primacy of the concept of open markets in food grains amid warnings from United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres of a looming “hellscape of hunger” for the world’s poorest. “Open Markets must not become an argument to perpetuate inequity and promote discrimination” in the availability of food grain, India’s Permanent Representative Ruchira Kamboj told the Security Council on Tuesday.

In a turnaround, India votes for UNGA resolution for Gaza ceasefire

Faced with the “challenge” to “strike the right balance”, India on Tuesday joined the General Assembly’s call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza, reversing its earlier position of abstaining. After the resolution was adopted with 153 votes, India’s Permanent Representative to UN, Ruchira Kamboj, outlined the complicating factors, the terrorist attack on October 7 on Israel, the humanitarian crisis and the deaths of civilians and said, “Our challenge in this extraordinarily difficult time is to strike the right balance.”

India to chair 62nd UN Commission for Social Development in 2024

India’s permanent representative to the UN, Ruchira Kamboj, on Monday chaired a member-state briefing in preparation for the 62nd UN Commission for Social Development in February 2024. Taking to X, ‘India at UN’ shared details about the briefing in a post, saying, “India led an insightful member state briefing in preparation for the 62nd UN Commission for Social Development in Feb 2024. Together, we aim to foster global cooperation for a more inclusive and sustainable future.”

Chandrayaan-3: India’s UN envoy spells out nation’s space goals for humanity

“By aiming for the moon, India has not only reached it, but also set our sights on the limitless possibilities that lie ahead (and) as the saying goes, ‘To infinity and beyond’,” India’s Permanent Representative Ruchira Kamboj said on Wednesday. While the successful landing of the Chandrayaan-3 on the moon “symbolises the aspirations of 1.4 billion Indians,” she added on Wednesday that “it’s a historic moment for humanity as we venture into uncharted territory near the moon’s South Pole”.

India responds to Pakistan attack in UN General Assembly with biting sarcasm

India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UN) Ruchira Kamboj offered Pakistan the “utmost sympathy” for what she described as its mindset of ignorance and inability to comprehend the culture of peace. In a voice dripping with sarcasm, she blew off a Pakistani attack on India at the General Assembly on Wednesday saying: “We have nothing but the utmost sympathy for such a mindset that utters falsehoods repeatedly, arising undeniably out of ignorance, and a total lack of appreciation for a culture of peace.”

With remarkable unanimity, UNGA adopts India-backed landmark resolution on AI safeguards

Setting aside their polarizing differences, all 193 countries joined to adopt a landmark resolution backed by India, aiming to keep the world safe from the excesses of artificial intelligence (AI). The UN General Assembly’s resolution passed unanimously on Thursday stressed “the urgency of achieving global consensus on safe, secure and trustworthy artificial intelligence systems” in the face of “potential risk for accidents and compound threats from malicious actors”.

‘Can’t be my way or highway’: India slams UFC model on UNSC reforms

India on Tuesday slammed the Uniting for Consensus (UFC) model on United Nations Security Council reforms, citing that it won’t empower Africa or Global South nations or change permanent seat membership. The UFC, which comprises 12 countries and two observers, including a P5 nation, stands against the idea advocated by a majority of the UN member states — which is an expansion in the permanent and non-permanent categories of an expanded Security Council.

Ex-UN Secy Gen Ban Ki-moon gets Power of One Award from New York-based Diwali Foundation

Accepting the Power of One Award from the New York-based Diwali Foundation USA, former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the global organisation is indispensable at a time when crises are tearing the world apart. After receiving the award on Monday, he said that crises like in the Middle East and Ukraine have kept nations and people apart and hindered global cooperation and progress. “But it is exactly at times such as these that the work of the UN is indispensable.”