JEDDAH: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has emphasized its willingness to cooperate with other countries in their efforts to reform the Security Council.

The Kingdom has said that it was a major task for the international community to deal with and has also assured its support to the proposals for reform in the working procedures in the council, use of veto power and collective commitment to not create hurdles in creating accountability in the cases of war crimes and manslaughter, and increasing the level of transparency and openness in choosing a secretary general, according to Asharq Al-Awsat’s online edition.

It was said in the Kingdom’s speech in the Security Council during an open discussion today about “methods of work procedures of the Security Council” as delivered by Ambassador Abdullah Al-Moallami, the Kingdom’s permanent representative at the United Nations.

Al-Moallami said: “The Kingdom has repeatedly called for reform in the Security Council and improvement of its methods of work because we live in a world torn apart by the weapons of war and where tension is rising. We badly need that the Security Council should be capable of imparting its basic duty to create international peace and security and defense of international legitimacy.”

He said that the process of reform of the Security Council started in 1993. A number of reports have been prepared and statements are made about improvement of the work procedures of the council which include increasing efficiency of the complementary relationship between the Security Council, the General Assembly and Economic and Social Council. “But still we could not find any comprehensive solution work … to enable the council to impart its basic duty in a better way as it is expected from it.”

Al-Moallami said that the Kingdom values the efforts made for improving the work procedures of the Security Council and its improvement including the initiative taken by Francois Hollande, President of France, about the use of veto power in major crimes.

The Kingdom’s permanent representative said: “The reform of the Security Council is [a] most important task which is to be dealt by the international community as the council is celebrating its 70th anniversary of its establishment.”

He said that the Kingdom was willing to cooperate with other member countries to achieve this objective.