India on Monday voted against the UN Security Council (UNSC) draft resolution that would have linked climate-related issues with global security challenges. The UN draft resolution said that the intention was to integrate climate-related security risk as a central component into comprehensive conflict-prevention strategies. Senior Indian diplomat defended his decision of rejecting the draft and said that the UN Security Council is not a place to discuss issues of climate action or climate justice. He also emphasized that India is second to none when it comes to matters related to the better of the climate.
UN drops draft resolution on climate change | Key Points
1. The draft resolution was dropped after India and Russia voted against the resolution and it was vetoed by Russia, a permanent member of the UN Security Council. The draft had 12 votes in favour and two against with one abstention (China).
2. India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations T S Tirumurti said that UNSC Resolution attempts to undermine the hard-won consensus which was reached in Glasgow. He also said that the resolution would only sow the seeds of discord among the larger UN membership.
3. "India is second to none when it comes to climate action and climate justice, but the Security Council is not a place to discuss either issue. In fact, the attempt to do so appears to be motivated by a desire to evade responsibility in the appropriate forum and divert the world's attention from an unwillingness to deliver where it counts," the senior Indian diplomat said.
4. He also said that India will always support real climate action and serious climate justice. He further said that India will always speak up for the interests of the developing world, including Africa and the Sahel region but the country will do so in the right place.
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5. "Ironically, many of the UNSC members are the main contributors of climate change due to historical emissions. If the Security Council indeed takes over the responsibility on this issue, a few states will then have a free hand in deciding on all climate-related issues. This is clearly neither desirable nor acceptable," T S Tirumurti said. "India had no option but to vote against" the resolution, he added.
