Absurd to imagine India isn't permanent UNSC member: Sarkozy

Backing India's bid for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council (UNSC), former French President Nicolas Sarkozy today said it is "absurd" to imagine that the world's largest democracy is yet to become a permanent member of the powerful wing of the world body.
India will soon be the world's most populous country in the world and "it is really absurd to imagine" that " it is not a permanent member of UNSC", he said while addressing a conference organised by an industry body here.
"We must ensure India has a permanent membership of the Security Council. How can you ignore a billion Indians?" Sarkozy wondered.

Proclaiming himself as a "friend of India", the current Leader of Opposition of France, said there is something "very special" about India and he shares a "deep fascination" for it and said there must be strategic partnership between India and France.
He advocated reforms in the architecture and functioning of global institutions like the G20 and the WTO.
The former French President said he was opposed to the double status of some countries having veto power in the UNSC while others don't.

France's partnership with India, he said, can grow stronger if India becomes a permanent member of the UNSC.

He said there was a "need to increase the permanent members" and every continent has to decide who it would like to designate as a permanent member. He also said the architecture of other global institutions like the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the G20 and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) needs to be relooked at and reformed.
Referring to the yet to be concluded nearly Rs 60,000 crore Rafale jets deal and the nuclear pact, Sarkozy gave a "commitment" that his party or whoever comes to power in the French presidential election scheduled to be held next year will honour India's agreements with the French Republic.

"There is a possibility that in a year there will be a new government in France, possibility (is there) that our party will come to power in France. Commitment that agreement with the French Republic will be respected.
"If you sign agreements for nuclear reactors or Rafale we will commit to these when we come to power. France is 100 per cent behind you whichever government is in power," said the former French President.
Noting that India has an "immense responsibility towards its citizens and the environment", Sarkozy lauded the country's stance at the Paris climate summit, terming the position taken by it as "very courageous".

The universal agreement, which were reached at Conference of Parties (CoP21), aims to keep the global temperature rise well below 2 degrees Celsius this century and to drive efforts to limit the temperature increase further to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
India had hailed as "historic" the adoption of a legally-binding pact in Paris but said the deal could have been more ambitious, if developed nations had shouldered more historical responsibilities.