Russia has backed India's candidature for a permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council, with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov telling the UN General Assembly that any reform of the body must broaden representation of Asia, Africa and Latin America — while ruling out additional seats for Germany and Japan.
Speaking at the 81st session of the General Assembly in New York on Saturday, Lavrov said that UN Security Council reform "cannot involve any additional seats being allocated to Western countries, especially to Germany and Japan," describing them as being on a path of militarism and revanchism. He added: "We are in favour of broadening the representation of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. We support Brazil's and India's candidatures for a permanent seat," stressing that the interests of the African continent must be satisfied.
A fault line inside the G4
Lavrov's position exposes a split within the G4 coalition — India, Brazil, Germany and Japan — which is pushing jointly for permanent membership. The four countries' foreign ministers met on the sidelines of the General Assembly this week and called for expansion in both the permanent and non-permanent categories, along with stronger representation for Africa, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean. Russia's stand endorses two of the four members while rejecting the other two.
Wider backing for India
India drew support from other delegations during the high-level debate. Mauritian Foreign Minister Dhananjay Ramful endorsed India's candidature while speaking on Council reform, saying his country reiterated its support for India's bid, commensurate with its constructive role in global affairs. India has long argued that the Council's structure must reflect contemporary geopolitical realities.
Lavrov also said Russia was working with its allies and strategic partners, including BRICS, the SCO and the Eurasian Economic Union, to advance what he called a unifying agenda of concrete ideas and projects, with the UN playing a central role in discussions on international information security.
Sources:
- The Hindu BusinessLine — "Russia backs India's candidature for UNSC permanent seat" (PTI, September 27, 2026) — https://www.thehindubusinessline.co...e-for-unsc-permanent-seat/article71515337.ece
- IANS — "Russia backs India, Brazil for permanent UN Security Council seats, opposes Germany, Japan" (September 27, 2026) — https://ianslive.in/russia-backs-in...l-seats-opposes-germany-japan--20260927051802
Speaking at the 81st session of the General Assembly in New York on Saturday, Lavrov said that UN Security Council reform "cannot involve any additional seats being allocated to Western countries, especially to Germany and Japan," describing them as being on a path of militarism and revanchism. He added: "We are in favour of broadening the representation of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. We support Brazil's and India's candidatures for a permanent seat," stressing that the interests of the African continent must be satisfied.
A fault line inside the G4
Lavrov's position exposes a split within the G4 coalition — India, Brazil, Germany and Japan — which is pushing jointly for permanent membership. The four countries' foreign ministers met on the sidelines of the General Assembly this week and called for expansion in both the permanent and non-permanent categories, along with stronger representation for Africa, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean. Russia's stand endorses two of the four members while rejecting the other two.
Wider backing for India
India drew support from other delegations during the high-level debate. Mauritian Foreign Minister Dhananjay Ramful endorsed India's candidature while speaking on Council reform, saying his country reiterated its support for India's bid, commensurate with its constructive role in global affairs. India has long argued that the Council's structure must reflect contemporary geopolitical realities.
Lavrov also said Russia was working with its allies and strategic partners, including BRICS, the SCO and the Eurasian Economic Union, to advance what he called a unifying agenda of concrete ideas and projects, with the UN playing a central role in discussions on international information security.
Sources:
- The Hindu BusinessLine — "Russia backs India's candidature for UNSC permanent seat" (PTI, September 27, 2026) — https://www.thehindubusinessline.co...e-for-unsc-permanent-seat/article71515337.ece
- IANS — "Russia backs India, Brazil for permanent UN Security Council seats, opposes Germany, Japan" (September 27, 2026) — https://ianslive.in/russia-backs-in...l-seats-opposes-germany-japan--20260927051802
