Netherlands backs India for permanent UNSC seat
06 Jul 2011
New Delhi: The Netherlands on Tuesday backed India's permanent membership in an expanded UN Security Council. The world's 16th largest economy, Netherlands also seeks to expand economic ties.
The expression of support came in a meeting between external affairs minister, SM Krishna, and his Dutch counterpart, Dr Uri Rosenthal, who began his three-day visit to India on Monday. Discussions ranged on a number of issues, including intensification of economic ties, UN reforms and the global financial architecture.
"Dr Rosenthal expressed Netherlands' support for India's permanent membership in an expanded UN Security Council, besides also endorsing efforts of G4 towards the said objective," the external affairs ministry said in a statement.
The Netherlands is among India's key economic partners in Europe, with bilateral trade estimated to be over 5 billion euros, which is in India's favour.
India also plans to open a cultural centre in the Netherlands, a founding member of the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.
