India Names AI and Maritime Security as Key Priorities for Its 2028-29 UNSC Bid
India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Parvathaneni Harish, said that artificial intelligence (AI) and maritime security (safety of ships, sea routes and seafarers) will be key priorities in India's bid for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council (UNSC) for the 2028-29 term.
He spoke at a UNSC open debate on emerging technologies and maritime security. Greece, which held the Council presidency for October 2026, convened the debate.
India stressed the need to protect freedom of navigation and lawful sea trade. It condemned attacks on commercial ships and said that disruption at key sea chokepoints (narrow sea passages that many ships must pass through) can hurt countries far away from the place of attack.
India said AI can study satellite images, radar data and ship-tracking data to spot suspicious activity at sea, help in search and rescue, and help respond quickly to signal jamming or attempts to cut undersea cables. It said technology should strengthen human security, not weaken it.
India offered cooperation under its SAGAR vision (Security and Growth for All in the Region) and pointed to the Information Fusion Centre for the Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR), run by the Indian Navy at Gurugram near New Delhi, as a model of sharing maritime information with partner countries.
India launched its campaign for the 2028-29 seat in July 2026. The election for the one Asia-Pacific seat is due in the UN General Assembly in June 2027, where India faces Tajikistan.
United Nations Security Council (UNSC): Composition, Powers, and the Veto
The UN Security Council is the UN body responsible for keeping international peace and security. It has 15 members. Five are permanent and hold a veto (the US, UK, France, Russia and China). The other ten are non-permanent members, elected for two-year terms. Its resolutions on serious matters bind every UN member.
India is asking UN members to elect it for a ninth term in 2028-29. To win, it needs two-thirds of the votes in the General Assembly in June 2027, so it is now telling members what it would focus on, with AI and maritime security at the top.
Freedom of Navigation and the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is the main global treaty that sets the rules for the oceans. It decides how far each country's control reaches into the sea and protects the right of ships of every country to sail through international waters and key straits. This right is called freedom of navigation.
Attacks on merchant ships near chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz threaten the freedom of navigation that UNCLOS protects. India has placed this at the centre of its UNSC pitch and cited UNCLOS and the IMO as the legal base for safe seas.
Global Governance of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Global governance of AI means the rules, agreements and bodies that countries build together to manage the risks and benefits of artificial intelligence. Because an AI system made in one country can affect people everywhere, no single country can manage it alone. The UN is trying to give every country, not just a few rich ones, a voice in these rules.
India told the Council that technology must strengthen human security. By naming AI as a priority for its UNSC term, India is signalling that it wants a say in how the Council handles AI-related security risks, including at sea.
- India's UNSC bid: non-permanent seat for 2028-29; election in the UN General Assembly in June 2027; rival for the Asia-Pacific seat: Tajikistan
- India's past UNSC terms: 8 (latest 2021-22)
- Votes needed: two-thirds of members present and voting in the General Assembly (Article 18, UN Charter)
- UNSC: 15 members (5 permanent with veto, 10 non-permanent for two-year terms; Article 23)
- October 2026 UNSC presidency: Greece; open debate on emerging technologies and maritime security
- IFC-IOR: set up by the Indian Navy in December 2018 at Gurugram
- SAGAR: Security and Growth for All in the Region
- UNCLOS: adopted 1982, in force 1994, ratified by India 1995
- UN AI bodies: Independent International Scientific Panel on AI (40 members) and Global Dialogue on AI Governance, created by UNGA resolution of 26 August 2025