'Absurd' that India doesn't have permanent seat on UN Security Council: Elon Musk

'At some point, there needs to be a revision of the UN bodies. Problem is that those with excess power don’t want to give it up,' Musk said.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk posted on social media platform X saying that India not having a permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council is 'absurd' despite being the 'most populous' country on Earth. He called for an overhaul of the United Nations organs.

Musk's remarks came after UN Secretary-General, António Guterres' raised concerns about the absence of any African nation from the list of permanent members of the UNSC. On Sunday, he posted on X saying, "How can we accept that Africa still lacks a single Permanent Member in the Security Council? Institutions must reflect today’s world, not that of 80 years ago."

Author Michael Eisenberg replied to the UN Secretary-General's post asking about India, to which Musk added saying, "At some point, there needs to be a revision of the UN bodies. Problem is that those with excess power don’t want to give it up."

"India not having a permanent seat on the Security Council, despite being the most populous country on Earth, is absurd. Africa collectively should also have a permanent seat imo", he added.

India has been at the forefront of years-long efforts to reform the Security Council, saying it rightly deserves a place as a permanent member at the UN high table, which in its current form does not represent the geo-political realities of the 21st Century.

Currently, the UNSC has five permanent members - China, France, Russia, the UK and the US. Only a permanent member has the power to veto any substantive resolution.

(With PTI inputs)