Putin suggests adding India, other countries to UN Security Council

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Russia feeling impact of sanctions from Western countries amid Ukraine war

Senior foreign affairs correspondent Greg Palkot reports the latest. 

There could be a shakeup in which countries are allowed on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), as Russian President Vladimir Putin has advocated countries like India be given a seat at the proverbial table.

During an annual discussion forum Thursday, Putin praised Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and expressed support for reforming the United Nations Security Council to include his country as a member. The UNSC previously accepted India as a temporary member, allowing it to join for two years. This membership expired in 2022.

“I believe we should adapt international law to current needs and changing global situations. Countries with substantial influence in international affairs, like India with its 1.5 billion people and over 7% GDP growth, deserve representation and the opportunity to contribute to resolving global issues,” Putin said at the Valdai Discussion Club’s annual conference in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia.

He added, “India’s high-tech exports are growing exponentially, making it stronger each year under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership.”

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Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures while speaking at the annual meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia, Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023. (Grigory Sysoyev, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

India and Russia share a unique international partnership, with India purchasing record quantities of Russian oil.

The southern Asian country has also refrained from getting involved with Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, which includes abstaining from U.N General Assembly votes denouncing Russia.  

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India has also maintained a long history of buying and using Russian weapons for its military.

Russian President Vladimir Putin addresses the annual meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia, Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023. (Grigory Sysoyev, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

China, France, the Russian Federation, the U.K. and the U.S. are the only five permanent members of the UNSC, although it elects 10 non-permanent members for two-year terms.

India previously served as a member of the UNSC and has spent decades arguing for a permanent seat.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India welcomes President Biden for the G-20 Leaders’ Summit on Sept. 9, 2023 in New Delhi. (Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Such a move has been strongly resisted by China, which has emerged as a diplomatic ally of Russia’s, especially as Moscow faces international sanctions over its ambitions in Ukraine.

Putin’s suggestion to change international laws comes as he has also advocated for lifting atomic test bans.

Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the lower house, the State Duma, followed Putin’s warning by saying Moscow could rescind the ratification of the international pact banning nuclear tests since the United States has never ratified it.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023, that Russia has effectively completed the development of the Burevestnik cruise missile and the Sarmat heavy intercontinental ballistic missile and will work on putting them into production. (RU-RTR Russian Television via AP)

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“It conforms with our national interests,” Volodin said of rescinding the 2000 ratification. “And it will come as a quid pro quo response to the United States, which has still failed to ratify the treaty.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.