31-Jan-2019: China says India must sign NPT to gain entry into NSG
China refused to dilute its stand on India’s entry into the elite Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), asserting that New Delhi must sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty to gain entry as there is no precedent for the inclusion of non-NPT countries.
China has been opposing India’s entry into the 48-member NSG on the ground that India is not a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), though the other P5 members, including the US and Russia backed its case based on New Delhi’s non-proliferation record. China, France, Russia, Britain and the US – the permanent members of the UNSC also known as P5 countries – have concluded their two meetings here to discuss issues related to nuclear disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear energy.
At the end of the successful conference the member countries reached an important consensus to jointly uphold the responsibilities for international peace and security. We will uphold the NPT mechanism. We underscore its importance as the cornerstone of international non-proliferation system and also an important component of international security.
The NSG is the top club of countries which controls access to technology and guards against proliferation. Its membership is important for India to access cutting-edge high technology.
China has sought to club India and Pakistan together, on the basis of both being non-signatories of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), and has asked the NSG countries to adopt a “criteria-based approach” — which essentially means that either both can get into the group or none. But most of the NSG countries, including the US, France and UK, make a clear distinction between India and Pakistan’s nuclear non-proliferation track record.
While New Delhi points to its clean track record on non-proliferation, many — including the American and French interlocutors — have pointed out how Pakistan’s nuclear programme, led by A Q Khan, violated all norms of nuclear non-proliferation and had links with the North Korean nuclear programme.
In April last year, India had once again reached out to China and tried to convince the interlocutors in Beijing to lift their objections at the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).
15-Jan-2019: Palestine takes over chairmanship of G77.
“Palestine and its citizens have first-hand experience of some of the most challenging and dramatic global issues we face” said Mr. Guterres in his remarks at the annual ceremony for handover of the rotating Chairmanship of the G77.
Egypt was the previous Chair of the bloc, a coalition of 134 developing countries, along with China.
The decision to elect Palestine as 2019 Chair of the G77 was taken in September 2018 by the foreign ministers of the Groups’ member States.
A month later, the UN General Assembly approved a resolution that enabled Palestine – a non-member Observer State at the world body – additional privileges and rights, such participating in international conferences held under its auspices, for the duration of its role as G77 Chair.
14-Jan-2017: Ecuador takes chair of UN group of G77 countries.
Ecuador has taken over from Thailand as chair of the Group of 77 which promotes the interests of the 134 developing countries it represents at the United Nations, including China.
Ecuador’s President Rafael Correa told at handover ceremony that the group will continue promoting “social and economic equality.” This can only be done if “poverty, inequality and exclusion” are eradicated and people live with “sovereignty, dignity and in peace.”
Thailand’s Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai said his country focused in 2016 on how to implement the 17 UN goals for 2030 to promote development and good governance, and preserve the environment.
New Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the G-77 is his “preferred forum” to implement his vision including seeing the new goals become reality and reforming UN operations.
21-Nov-2018: BASIC states ask developed countries to scale up financial aid
Ahead of the UN climate conference in Poland next month, the BASIC (Brazil, South Africa, India and China) group met to put pressure on developed countries to meet pre-2020 climate efforts, and to “progressively” and “substantially” scale up their financial support for future action.
The group, through a joint statement, urged developed countries to take urgent actions to close the pre-2020 implementation gaps by 2023 which they said can be a useful input for the first Global Stock-take (GST) — which they said should be conducted in light of equity and the best available science. “The GST process should be comprehensive, considering mitigation, adaptation, means of implementation, as well as including loss and damage and response measures, and reflecting equity.”
The GST refers to a proposed five-yearly-review of the impact of climate change action undertaken by countries. Under the Paris Agreement, each country has to present a climate action plan every five years.
The 27th BASIC meet was chaired by Union Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan, in which the ministers “reiterated that public finance is the fulcrum of enhanced climate ambition by developing countries and urged developed countries to fulfil their climate finance commitments of mobilising USD 100 billion per annum by 2020.