External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar.

Summary

NEW DELHI: Highlighting the Ukraine crisis, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar called for United Nations Security Council reforms at the BRICS Foreign Ministersโ€™ Meet…

NEW DELHI: Highlighting the Ukraine crisis, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar called for United Nations Security Council reforms at the BRICS Foreign Ministersโ€™ Meet on Thursday.

โ€œBRICS has repeatedly affirmed respect for sovereign equality, territorial integrity and international law. We must live up to these commitments. The knock-on effects of the Ukraine conflict have led to sharp increases in the costs of energy, food and commodities. This must be mitigated for the sake of the developing world,โ€ Dr Jaishankar said.

The Foreign Ministersโ€™ meeting was convened virtually by Wang Yi, Chinaโ€™s State Councillor and Foreign Minister. The meeting was attended by South Africaโ€™s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor, Brazilโ€™s Minister of Foreign Affairs Carlos Alberto Franco Franรงa and Russiaโ€™s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov.

BRICS is a five-nation forum that consists of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

Urging for the reforms of the UN Security Council, Dr Jaishankar said, โ€œBRICS should unanimously and specifically support UN Security Council reform. Together, we should press for a credible commitment of resources by developed nations for climate action and climate justice.โ€

Dr Jaishankar also called for zero tolerance for cross border terrorism. โ€œBRICS must display zero tolerance for terrorism, especially cross border terrorism,โ€ he said.

โ€œA globalized and digitized world will give due regard to trust and transparency. Sustainable Development Goals must be approached in a comprehensive manner,โ€ Dr Jaishankar said in a tweet after the meeting.