‘Ahead of poll, UK resorting to dirty politics’

The UK is trying to “misuse” its UN Security Council membership by pushing for a joint conference mechanism, which was last used 96 years ago, in the election to the last seat in the World Court on Monday in which India’s Dalveer Bhandari is a front-runner, diplomatic sources said.

Bhandari and Britain’s Christopher Greenwood are locked in a neck-and-neck fight for re-election to the ICJ. One-third of the court’s 15-member bench are elected every three years for a nine-year term, elections for which are held separately but simultaneously in the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council in New York. Britain is aggressively pushing in the UN Security Council for resorting to the joint conference mechanism which was last used some 96 years ago and against which there exists an unequivocal legal opinion, sources said.

The “dirty politics” being played by India’s former colonial ruler, as one UN insider put it, has sent a sense of “uneasiness” among other members of the powerful UN Security Council, many of whom are aware of the long-term implications of a move to ignore the voice of the majority of the United Nations General Assembly. In all previous incidents, the candidate getting majority in the General Assem- bly has eventually been elected a judge of The Hague-based International Court of Justice.

Bhandari, 70, has support of nearly two-thirds of 193 UN members. Greenwood, who has already served one nine-year term in ICJ, is trailing behind more than 50 votes in the General Assembly. However, he received nine against five for Bhandari in the Security Council.

To win ICJ election, a candidate needs to get majority in both the General Assembly and the Security Council, which has not been the case in the 11 rounds of voting so far. Both the General Assembly and the Security Council have convened separate meetings at the UN headquarters tomorrow (3pm local time) to hold the 12th round of voting.

At a reception for Bhandari at the UN headquarters here on Friday, representatives of 160-member countries were present, reflecting the overwhelming majority India enjoys in the General Assembly. Sensing that majority is not on its side, almost at the same time, the United Kingdom went to the Security Council for an informal consultation with other 14 members. Observing that there is a deadlock situation on the ICJ election, Britain is learnt to have proposed that voting in the Security Council be stopped after first round tomorrow and they go for joint conference mechanism. It is understood that this was opposed by some members of the Security Council.

However, the British diplomats on Friday appeared confident to push its agenda through on Monday. Britain needs nine votes for the voting be stopped.

Their calculation is based on the fact that in multiple rounds of the elections in UNSC, Britain has been getting nine votes for its candidate.

UNITEDNATIONS: BHANDARI AND BRITAIN’S CHRISTOPHER GREENWOOD ARE LOCKED IN A NECKANDNECK FIGHT FOR REELECTION TO ICJ