Aniket Mahapatra and Vivek Sharma
mahapatraaniket2012@gmail.com, buddhistvivek@gmail.com
The United Nations, created in 1945 to embody the hope of a war-torn world for peace, security and cooperation, is today facing one of the gravest crises of legitimacy in its history, appearing to many as a powerless body that has lost its authority to act decisively in moments of global urgency. Established on the foundation of a post-World War II order, the organization still reflects the geopolitics of that era, when the victors of the war-the United States, the Soviet Union (now represented by Russia), the United Kingdom, France and China-were accorded permanent membership and veto power in the Security Council, while the rest of the world, including entire continents like Africa and regions such as South Asia and Latin America, were consigned to the margins of decision-making. This structural rigidity has become the UN’s greatest weakness in the twenty-first century, for the world of 2025 is profoundly different from the world of 1945: India is now the most populous country in the world and the fifth-largest economy, Africa is home to over 1.4 billion people and some of the fastest-growing economies, Latin America has emerged as a major player in trade and energy and Asia has become the central driver of the global economy. Yet none of these regions have permanent representation on the Security Council, which continues to monopolize global governance through the outdated authority of the P5, rendering the body illegitimate in the eyes of billions of people who are excluded from decisions that shape their lives. The problem is compounded by the veto system, which has often paralyzed the Security Council at critical moments; time and again, the veto has been used not to defend global peace but to safeguard narrow national interests, turning the Council into a stage for geopolitical rivalry rather than a mechanism for conflict resolution. Whether it was the prolonged tragedy of Syria, the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine or the renewed violence in Israel-Palestine, the UN has been conspicuous for its inaction, trapped in stalemates created by the veto and unable to intervene with credibility or effectiveness, leaving millions of innocent lives at the mercy of unilateral actions and regional wars. Beyond conventional conflicts, the UN has also failed to rise to the new challenges of the twenty-first century, such as climate change, pandemics, cyber warfare, terrorism and economic inequality.
Its climate summits generate high-sounding declarations but rarely enforce binding action; its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic exposed weaknesses in coordination and reliance on a few powerful states; and its bureaucracy often stifles timely response to emergencies. As a result, the UN has increasingly become a platform for symbolic speeches rather than decisive outcomes and its credibility has eroded in both the Global North and Global South, with many countries viewing it as a forum that lacks moral authority, beholden to donor funding and selective interventions. This widespread disillusionment has led to the recognition that if the UN cannot adapt, there is an urgent need to create a new world forum that can represent the realities of our times and restore trust in global governance. Such a body must be inclusive, multipolar and responsive to contemporary threats; it must reflect demographic realities by giving permanent and equal voice to India, Africa and Latin America; it must promote cooperation on climate action, digital security, equitable trade and counterterrorism with binding mechanisms rather than mere recommendations; it must dilute or eliminate veto power so that the paralysis of one country does not hold the world hostage; and most importantly, it must reclaim moral authority by embodying fairness, equity and justice, principles that the UN has increasingly failed to uphold. In this new framework, India is uniquely positioned to play a pivotal role. With over 1.4 billion people, India’s demographic weight alone makes its exclusion from the UN Security Council indefensible, but beyond numbers, India is also the fifth-largest economy, a hub of digital innovation and a global leader in pharmaceuticals, space research and renewable energy.
India’s civilizational heritage emphasizes dialogue, non-violence and inclusivity, principles articulated by figures like Gandhi and Vivekananda and these values are urgently needed to heal a fragmented world. Unlike many other powers, India has the rare ability to bridge divides between the developed and developing worlds: it maintains strong partnerships with Western democracies while also sharing historical solidarity with Asia, Africa and Latin America. This makes India not only a natural candidate for leadership but also a credible mediator in global disputes. India’s leadership during its G20 Presidency in 2023 demonstrated its capacity to harmonize diverse voices, most notably by bringing the African Union into the G20 as a permanent member, a historic move that reflects precisely the inclusivity and reform the global order needs. A new world forum that builds on such examples could emerge through the institutional expansion of BRICS into BRICS+, through coalitions of the Global South or even through radical reforms within the UN if possible, though the resistance of the P5 makes that path unlikely. Of course, the creation of a new body faces challenges, including resistance from existing powers unwilling to relinquish privilege, fragmentation among developing nations who may struggle to present a united front, the immense costs of establishing parallel institutions and the risks of transition in a world already facing instability. Yet these challenges cannot be excuses for inaction, for the alternative is a continued reliance on a system that is paralyzed, unrepresentative and increasingly irrelevant.
The way forward lies in India joining hands with Africa and Latin America to form an alliance that demands structural change, building on experiences like the G20 and BRICS, drafting a charter of cooperation that prioritizes urgent twenty-first-century challenges and gradually channelling resources away from ineffective UN structures toward a new multipolar institution. Such a forum could restore the faith of billions of people in the possibility of a fair and effective global order, one that is not bound by the shadows of 1945 but inspired by the realities of today and the hopes of tomorrow. The United Nations, once a beacon of post-war hope, has become in many respects a “joker” in international affairs, presiding over crises it cannot resolve and watching as threats escalate without effective intervention. If the UN cannot reform, the world must move beyond it. And India must seize this moment to lead. With its demographic strength, economic dynamism, civilizational depth and global credibility, India can provide the moral and practical foundation for a new system of world governance that embodies inclusivity, fairness and justice. The twenty-first century demands no less than a transformation of the institutions that govern it. And the creation of a new world forum with India at its heart is no longer an option but an urgent necessity.
(Aniket Mahapatra is Author & Academician and Vivek Sharma, Faculty member in the Department of Buddhist Studies, University of Jammu)
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