Putin calls for expanding UN Security Council representation for Asia, Africa, Latin America

NEW DELHI — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday called for expanding the UN Security Council to increase representation for countries from Asia, Africa and Latin America, saying the move would help strengthen the United Nations’ role in global affairs.Addressing the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi, Putin said Russia places particular importance on preserving and strengthening the UN’s central role and urged BRICS members to continue coordinating efforts to improve the organization’s effectiveness.“Naturally, expanding the UN Security Council — specifically by increasing representation for countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America — would contribute to this goal,” Putin said, according to a Kremlin transcript.Putin also called for reforms to major global economic institutions, saying there was a “long-standing need” to improve the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and World Trade Organization to better reflect current political and economic realities.He said the institutions remained important platforms for dialogue among leading economies and called for greater coordination among BRICS members within them.Turning to BRICS, Putin said the grouping’s intellectual and