Aline Beckestein
Reporter - Agencia Brasil

Rio de Janeiro – The inclusion of countries such as Brazil as permanent members of the United Nations (UN) Security Council is one of the issues that must be analyzed during the organization’s possible reform. It is the opinion of the Director of the UN Information Center in Brazil (UNIC-Rio), Carlos dos Santos.

During the seminar "The New UN", that occurred this Thursday (10) in Rio de Janeiro, to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the institution, Santos explained that when the UN was first created, there were only 45 Member States, and today, there are 191. The number of permanent seats in the Security Council, however, has remained the same during all these 60 years. They are occupied by the United States, England, France, Russia, and China.

"The non-inclusion of other countries as permanent members reduces the institution’s credibility, especially among developing nations. The UN needs to incorporate current world geopolitical dynamics, and this means the inclusion of countries such as Brazil, India, Germany, and African countries," he said.

The United Nations was created after World War II with the objective of maintaining world peace and security, fostering peaceful relations among nations, promoting human rights, social progress, and better standards of life. The 191 Member States abide by the UN Charter, an international treaty that lists rights and obligations of the international community members.

Translation: Andréa Alves