China welcomes the appointment of Ambassador Jinga, Permanent Representative of Romania, and Ambassador Mohamed Khiari, Permanent Representative of Tunisia, as co-Chairs of the intergovernmental negotiations process on Security Council reform. China will actively support their work.

During the membership-led process of negotiations at the seventieth session of the General Assembly, Member States carried out in-depth and candid exchanges of views on the five pillars of reform of the Security Council in a generally practical atmosphere and achieved favorable results. China appreciates that development.

Reforming the Security Council is a systemic project involving both the immediate interests of Member States and the long-term development of the United Nations. China is and has consistently been a supporter of an appropriate and necessary reform of the Security Council, advocating that priority be given to the increased representation in the Council of developing countries, particularly African countries, with a view to enabling more of them, especially the small and medium-sized countries that constitute the majority of the United Nations membership, to participate in the work and decision-making of the Council and to play a greater role in the maintenance of international peace and security.

Intergovernmental negotiations provide an important platform for Member States to engage in an extensive exchange of views, deepen their understanding of issues and bridge their differences. Such negotiations should conform to decision 62/557 and the consensus of the membership. They should be membership-led and should be based on the proposals and recommendations of Member States. China supports the work of the co-Chairs, which, in accordance with decision 62/557 and based on the principles of objectivity and fairness, is aimed at facilitating the efforts of Member States to gradually bridge their differences on the reform of the Council and to steadily move closer towards each other’s positions.

China hopes that Member States will continue to work constructively in the intergovernmental negotiations and, on the basis of extensive and democratic consultations, will arrive at the broadest possible consensus on the five groups of issues as one package. No artificial deadlines should be set on reform, nor should any immature proposals be imposed. China is ready to work together with all sides to ensure that reform of the Security Council will move in a direction that is in both the common interest of Member States and the long-term interests of the United Nations.