Lavrov Calls for UN Secretariat Reform, Citing 'Privatization' by One Group

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has called for reforming the UN Secretariat as it has been taken over by one group of states pursuing their own interests.

"A reform of the [UN] Secretariat is needed, including the criteria of its formation," he said at the third plenary session of the BRICS ministerial meeting in New Delhi. "The Charter envisages only one criterion - a fair geographical representation, but it is not respected."

According to the top Russian diplomat, the situation in which the Secretariat has "effectively been privatized by a single group of countries" is unacceptable. "The positions of the Secretary-General and his six key deputies, who hold the real administrative, budgetary, and other financial levers of control over the entire UN system, are occupied by citizens of NATO countries."

"Work in the interests of all member states has been replaced by the promotion of minority approaches and the imposition of neoliberal agenda," Lavrov said. "This issue requires particular attention, including at the next session of the [UN] General Assembly, which is due to take place in September."

However, the imbalances that have accumulated can be rectified only by the organization’s member states themselves, "which bear responsibility for the effectiveness of the United Nations, for respect for the distribution of duties among the statutory bodies, for preserving the intergovernmental nature of decision-making and, of course, for the consistent application of the principles of the UN," the Russian foreign minister emphasized.