Sweden backs India's bid for permanent UNSC seat

The future credibility of the UN Security Council will depend on India being offered a permanent seat, Swedish PM Goeran Persson said on Wednesday.

The future credibility of the United Nations Security Council will depend on India being offered a permanent seat, Swedish Prime Minister Goeran Persson said on Wednesday.

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"Is it possible to have in the future a credible multilateral organisation carrying the whole globe, without, for instance, letting in the biggest country according to population, at least soon, India?," Persson told reporters following the three-day conference on "Preventing Genocide".

"Is that possible? Of course not."

One of the topics debated at the conference, which brought together delegates from 50 countries and representatives for international organisations including UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, was how to reform the UN to better respond to crises where genocide or the possibility of genocide become apparent.

With a population of more than one billion, India has long sought a permanent seat on the UN Security Council, contending that the current membership -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States -- no longer represents today's world order.

"We have to reform the Security Council," Persson said, pointing out that a small country like Sweden depends on a working multilateral system for its voice to be heard.

"It's a crucial time because we realise that multilateralism is under pressure," Persson said. "If the multilateralist system does not work, we are in a situation where we don't have (any say) in a future that is decided globally."