UNSC discusses post-Pahalgam India-Pakistan tension at closed-door meeting

Amid growing tensions between India and Pakistan, the United Nations Security Council convened closed-door meetings in which envoys urged calm and negotiation.

The 15-nation Security Council held deliberations for nearly an hour and a half on Monday afternoon, but no statement was published by the Council following the meeting.

Pakistan, a non-permanent member of the influential Council, has requested “closed consultations” on the situation between the nuclear-armed neighbours.

Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, informed media following the meeting.

He said the objectives from the closed consultations included enabling the Council members to have a discussion on the deteriorating security environment and rising tensions between India and Pakistan and to have an exchange of views on how to address the situation, including avoiding confrontation that could have serious consequences.

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Greece, President of the Council for the month of May, had scheduled the meeting for Monday afternoon. The closed-door meeting did not take place in the UNSC Chamber where Council members sit at the horse-shoe table but in a consultations room next to the chamber.

Assistant Secretary-General for Middle East, Asia and the Pacific in the Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations Khaled Mohamed Khiari of Tunisia briefed the Council on behalf of both departments (DPPA and DPO).

Coming out of the meeting, he said there was a call for “dialogue and peaceful resolution of the conflict.” Khiari noted that the “situation is volatile”.

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Permanent Representative of Greece to the United Nations and President of the Security Council for the month of May Ambassador Evangelos Sekeris described the meeting as “productive meeting, helpful”.

Sekeris said the Security Council is always helpful in such efforts, in response to questions on the Council’s role in de-escalating tensions.

Last week, Sekeris had said that a meeting of the Council on the situation would be an “opportunity to have views expressed and this might help to diffuse a bit tensions.”

A Russian diplomat, coming out of the meeting, said, “We hope for de-escalation.” Just hours before the closed consultations, Guterres voiced concern over tensions between India and Pakistan being at “their highest in years”, saying “it pains me to see relations reaching a boiling point.”

Guterres made remarks to the press from the UNSC stake-out Monday morning amid rising tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir that killed 26 civilians, including a Nepali citizen.

Guterres said he understands the “raw feelings” following the “awful terror attack” in Pahalgam and reiterated his strong condemnation of that attack.

“Targeting civilians is unacceptable – and those responsible must be brought to justice through credible and lawful means,” he said.

Guterres stressed that it is essential – especially at this critical hour – to avoid a military confrontation that could easily spin out of control.

“Now is the time for maximum restraint and stepping back from the brink. That has been my message in my ongoing outreach with both countries. Make no mistake: A military solution is no solution,” the UN Chief said.

Before the UNSC meeting, India’s former Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin had told PTI that no “consequential outcome" can be expected from “a discussion where a party to the conflict seeks to shape perceptions by using its membership of the Council. India will parry such Pakistani efforts.”

Following the meeting, he said “Pakistan’s grandstanding has flopped again today as in the past. As was expected there was no meaningful response by the Council. Indian diplomacy has yet again successfully parried Pakistani efforts to seek the Security Council’s intervention.”

Apart from the five veto-wielding permanent members — China, France, Russia, UK and the US — the 10 non-permanent members in the Council are Algeria, Denmark, Greece, Guyana, Pakistan, Panama, South Korea, Sierra Leone, Slovenia and Somalia.