India in touch with NSG members for membership: Government

New Delhi March 29 (IANS) The government on Wednesday said that India is engaged with individual members of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) for obtaining its membership.

The merits of India s candidature have been recognised by a majority of NSG members External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said in the Lok Sabha while responding to a question.

While no member of the Group has explicitly opposed India s membership certain procedural issues have been raised by a few members the minister said.

India has received support from a diverse and large number of members including the United States France the United Kingdom the Russian Federation Canada Australia Germany Belgium Republic of Korea Spain the Netherlands Sweden Finland and Japan.

The BRICS (Brazil Russia India China and South Africa) as a group has not issued any statement on India s membership of the NSG she added.

On the Indian membership of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) she said: India has undertaken a series of initiatives in pursuance of permanent membership in an expanded Security Council.

India is actively engaged in the ongoing Inter-governmental Negotiations on UNSC reform at the UN and is working alongside other reform-oriented countries through the G-4 (India Japan Brazil and Germany) and the L.69 Group (a cross-regional grouping of developing countries) Sushma said.

During the 8th BRICS Summit in October 2016 held at Goa the leaders reaffirmed the need for a comprehensive reform of the UN including its Security Council she said.

China and the Russian Federation reiterated the importance they attach to the status and role of Brazil India and South Africa in international affairs and support their aspiration to play a greater role in the UN she added.

--IANS
rs/nir/bg