In a stern message, the United States, Britain and France on Monday warned Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad of "serious consequences" if he fails to surrender his chemical weapons, saying military strike remains an option.
Raking up Kashmir, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday said the non-resolution of the issue reflected failure of the UN and proposed a 4-point "peace initiative" which includes demilitarisation of Kashmir and unconditional withdrawal of forces from Siachen.
Ahead of a visit to India, United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday expressed hope that the Security Council's reform process will be accelerated to meet expectations of countries like India which are keen to play a bigger role as permanent members of the powerful UN body.
Speaking in the Security Council briefing on 'Threat to International Peace & Security Caused by Terrorist Acts' on Wednesday, Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador T S Tirumurti reiterated India's firm belief that terrorism in one part of the world is threat to peace and security of entire world.
The US does not expect any "serious response" from Iran to halt its controversial nuclear programme unless the UN Security Council slaps Tehran with additional sanctions, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Friday.
A United Nations human rights investigator has recommended that international pressure be put on North Korea as part of a multi-pronged strategy to know the fate of hundreds of foreign nationals allegedly abducted by it.
Former Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs, Karl F Inderfurth, has told the US Congress that Washington should publicly support India's bid for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council, arguing that the India's case has never been stronger.
The one-day event organised on Tuesday by the 2010 India-China Development Forum, which was set up with backing of China's top media houses and the Indian Embassy in Beijing, has displayed a heated debate, something that the Chinese media professionals have rarely seen and appeared to have thoroughly enjoyed.
Oil rich Venezuela, which has been lobbying for the non-permanent UN Security Council seat for a long time, distributing huge amounts of aid among African, Asian and Caribbean nations. But it is vehemently opposed by the United States.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Monday announced his bid to seek re-election to the top post of this world body.
The government of Punjab province has decided not to close welfare organisations run by the Jamaat, which was declared a front for the Lashker-e-Tayiba terror group by the UN Security Council soon after the Mumbai attacks. The provincial government has appointed doctors in Jamaat dispensaries and decided to retain the old teaching staff in its schools, television channels reported.
The Pakistan government has blocked a resolution moved in the UN Security Council for imposing sanctions against former Inter-Services-Intelligence chief retired Lieutenant General Hamid Gul over his alleged links with al-Qaeda and Taliban, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said on Wednesday.
In a statement on behalf of the EU, Britain offered new negotiations meant to defuse tensions over Iran's insistence that it must be in full control of uranium enrichment-- a possible pathway to nuclear arms.
India should watch the emergence of the situation and then see how others react, he said adding that Russia has stood by India in very difficult times.
Eyebrows went north in India, especially in New Delhi where in the confusion some people criticized the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) which is based in New York. Chitra Subramaniam offers some perspective.
Antonio Guterres, who had served as UN High Commissioner for Refugees for 10 years, has emerged as the front-runner in the first two rounds of informal voting.
Even as New Delhi consolidates its global standing this year with a non-permanent seat in the UN Security Council, Jyoti Malhotra feels it will be the countries in its immediate neighbourhood that will be top priority for India's foreign office.
UN Security Council is witnessing an acrimonious wrangling over the action it should take on the Georgian conflict, after a fresh draft resolution introduced by Russia on the issue was promptly opposed by the United States.
He feared elections planned for January would not go ahead in Iraq unless security improved.
Pitching for a greater role for India globally, former US President George W Bush favoured its entry into the expanded UN Security Council, which he acknowledged had got caught into political complications over questions like size and criteria.
India and China held their fourth round of strategic dialogue to discuss a host of issues such as New Delhi's concerns relating to issuance of stapled visas by Beijing for Kashmiris and its bid for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
Raking up the Kashmir issue at the United Nations, Pakistan repeated its call for Security Council resolutions to be implemented in the state and said fulfilling promise of self-determination to the Kashmiri people is "indispensable" to establishing lasting peace and stability in South Asia.
Member of parliament from Thiruvananthapuram and former Union Minister of state for external affairs Dr Shashi Tharoor has said that getting an entry into the UN Security Council is a significant achievement for India.
A CPI-M member in the Lok Sabha,on Wednesday asked the government to condemn a United States State Department statement that India tell Iran to 'meet the requirements of the UN Security Council' on its nuclear programme during Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejads upcoming visit.
The Jamaat-ud-Dawah has established an extensive network in Punjab province to collect funds and relief materials in the name of flood victims despite Pakistan government's contention that hardline groups will not be allowed to operate in garb of charitable organisations.
Pakistan on Friday said it has briefed the envoys of the P5 -- the US, China, Russia, the UK and France -- over "unprovoked firing" by India on the LoC and asked the countries to play their role in ensuring the maintenance of peace and security in the region.
Amid the US-led moves to impose fresh sanctions on Iran, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has made it clear to President Barack Obama that India was opposed to any sanctions that would target common people of that country.
French President Nicholas Sarkozy made a strong pitch for India's inclusion as a permanent member of the UN Security Council on Tuesday, which he said needs to be expanded to make it more inclusive."Did you know that India... in 30 years time... the world's most populous nation, doesn't have a permanent seat on the Security Council?" said the French president, hosted by Columbia University as part of the World Leaders Forum.
The Pakistan government today banned Jamaat-ud-Dawa, the front organisation for the outlawed LeT blamed for the Mumbai attacks, after the UN Security Council declared it a terrorist outfit and sealed its nine offices in Sindh apart from rounding up over 20 of its activists.
The warning came despite assertion by visiting Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon on Tuesday that India's dealings with Iran were not in any way a contravention of the UN Security Council resolutions.
"The 21st century world cannot be governed with the institutions of the 20th century," French President Nicolas Sarkozy told the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday. "Let today's major powers and the powers of tomorrow unite to shoulder together the responsibilities their influence give them in world affairs," Sarkozy, who is the current president of the EU, said.
The crisis in Georgia is brewing to a major showdown between the United States and Russia.
However, there would be some exceptions such as equipment meant for light water reactors and low-enriched uranium when it is incorporated in assembled nuclear fuel elements for such reactors.
"The Australian government fully appreciates how central India is to our future," Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said in a speech at the University of Western Australia, his alma mater, while making a strong push for closer ties in social, economic and defence sectors.
Growth of food consumption in rapidly developing India and China is named as the primary reason for the crisis, which some have dubbed as 'silent tsunami,' the former Soviet President wrote in the official Rossiskaya Gazeta daily. "This is an objective reason: we need to rejoice that millions of people are coming out of poverty and can afford normal diet. Our planet is capable of feeding them," he said.
In a statement later, the White House said Biden and Netanyahu discussed Israel's military campaign in Gaza, including its "objectives and phasing".
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Uzbekistan this week and discuss issues of strategic stability, the situation in the Asia Pacific region and bilateral cooperation within the UN and G20, the Kremlin has announced.
A news report had claimed that Bush had threatened Dr Singh with regard to voting for Venezuela in the elections for non-permanent members of UN Security Council.
India hit out at China for its remarks that there was no consensus over the United States' proposal to ban Pathankot attack mastermind and Jaish-e-Mohammed is chief Masood Azhar at the United Nations
