Uniting for Consensus

Joint statement

The “Uniting for Consensus” Group (UfC) - consisting of Argentina, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Italy, Malta, Mexico, Pakistan, Republic of Korea, San Marino, Spain, Türkiye - met today, September 26th, 2024, on the margins of the High-Level week of the United Nations 79th General Assembly in New York, to discuss the recently adopted "Pact for the Future" and take stock of the process of UN Security Council (UNSC) Reform.

The members of UfC welcomed the call made by the Heads of State and Government in the recently adopted “Pact for the Future” to pursue a reform of the Security Council that recognizes the urgent need to make it more representative, inclusive, transparent, efficient, effective, democratic, and accountable.

This clear reflection underscores the necessity of achieving a comprehensive reform of the Security Council within the Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN), the sole appropriate and legitimate forum to negotiate the reform of the Security Council, in the interest of the Organization itself and of all Member States

The members of UfC recalled that in March 2024, the group presented a model that proposes increasing the number of non-permanent members (including longer term non-permanent seats) and improving the UNSC’s methods of work, ensuring accountability to a wider membership and a more equitable geographic distribution. In addition, UfC promotes limiting the use of the veto of the five permanent members.

Being fully cognizant of the need to redress the historical injustice against Africa, UfC continues to believe that enlarging the non-permanent category offers a concrete and effective opportunity for every Member State to actively contribute to maintaining international peace and security, and re-balance the UNSC by increasing the participation of under-represented regions. We are committed to finding a practical solution that takes into account the aspirations of the African continent, as well as other regions. The UfC's model ensures Africa’s due and substantial representation in a reformed Council. It also takes into account the distinct under-representation of regions such as Asia-Pacific and Latin America and the Caribbean, given the expansion in UN Membership since 1963. It also increases representation of other regional and cross-regional groupings.

While the calls in the “Pact for the Future” for much needed UNSC reform are welcomed, negotiations of the Pact illustrated the challenges and limitations of text-based negotiations in the absence of common ground on the five interlinked “clusters” of UNSC reform. Given the stage of the ongoing negotiations at the IGN, the UfC group believes that the wider membership has yet to reach the necessary convergences on the main pillars of the reform to be able to commence text-based negotiations, and thus no artificial deadlines should be set at this time. Currently, there is agreement only on the expansion of the two-year non-permanent category and in the need to make the Council’s working methods more effective.

UfC reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to sustained and constructive engagement within the IGN, to achieve a consolidated model for Security Council reform that benefits all Member States and not just a few. UfC stands ready to collaborate closely with the President of the General Assembly, the Chairs of the IGN, Member States and negotiating groups.

Uniting for Consensus, a pro-reform and cross-regional group that advocates for a comprehensive and realistic reform of the Security Council, will continue to work to ensure that the process remains inclusive, transparent, and reflective of the shared aspirations for a Security Council that truly serves the global community.

New York, September 26th, 2024