UNITED NATIONS — The General Assembly launched negotiations Thursday aimed at reforming the powerful U.N. Security Council after nearly 30 years of efforts mired by national and regional rivalries.
Representatives of the 192 member states met informally behind closed doors to listen to the timetable for talks on five key issues, including the size, composition and power of an expanded council.
There is widespread support for revamping the U.N.’s most powerful organ to reflect current global realities rather than the international power structure after World War II when the United Nations was created. But all previous attempts, starting in 1979, have failed because rivalries between countries and regions blocked agreement on how to expand the council.
