Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov Calls for Reform of UN Secretariat

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has called for significant reforms to the United Nations Secretariat, arguing that it has been effectively taken over by a single group of states pursuing their own interests. Speaking at the third plenary session of the BRICS ministerial meeting in New Delhi, Lavrov stated that the current situation, where the Secretariat is dominated by citizens of NATO countries, is unacceptable. He highlighted that the positions of the Secretary-General and his six key deputies, who control administrative and financial levers, are held by nationals from NATO member states. Lavrov criticized this imbalance for replacing work in the interests of all member states with the promotion of minority approaches and a neoliberal agenda. He emphasized that the UN Charter mandates fair geographical representation, a criterion currently ignored. The Russian diplomat urged member states to rectify these accumulated imbalances to preserve the intergovernmental nature of decision-making. He indicated that this issue requires particular attention and will likely be addressed at the next session of the UN General Assembly scheduled for September.