V4 Nations’ Big Announcement: India Must Get Permanent UNSC Seat; Slovakia FM Extends Strong Support..
At the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), India held its first Foreign Minister-level meeting with the powerful Visegrad Group (V4) of Central Europe. Following this historic ‘V4+India’ dialogue, the four European countries of the Visegrad Group have openly and strongly supported India’s bid for permanent membership in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). The high-level meeting, held in New York, was attended by Dr. S. Jaishankar along with the following Deputy Prime Ministers and Foreign Ministers of the Visegrad Group: Radosław Sikorski, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Poland, Dr. Aneta Orbán, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Hungary, Juraj Blanár, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Slovakia, and the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the Czech Republic (Czechia). The group agreed to hold annual meetings, launch a business forum, and enhance ties in technology, defense, culture, and education, while Slovakia expressed its firm support for India’s bid for a UN Security Council seat. India’s Foreign Minister, Dr. S. Jaishankar, described the meeting as “a new, historic opportunity” and a highly meaningful one. Slovakia’s Foreign Minister, Juraj Blanár, who currently chairs the Visegrad Group, issued a significant statement after the meeting, stating that the four (V4) countries fully agree that India is an important part of the Global South. As an emerging superpower in the Indo-Pacific region, India must be at the UN Security Council table as a permanent member. This meeting is being considered a major diplomatic victory for India’s “Europe policy.” The Visegrad Group countries are strong industrialized economies and possess excellent innovation and technology talent. At a time when India is leading a global campaign for reforms and its permanent seat in the UNSC, this combined support from these four important European countries further strengthens India’s global stature.