China says it's not appropriate for UN chief Kofi Annan to set another time limit for Security Council reform, stressing this will not help the solving of the problem.

China's Permanent Representative to the UN, Wang Guangya, says it's not appropriate for UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to set another time limit for Security Council reform, stressing this will not help the solving of the problem.

Kofi Annan on Wednesday backed away from his appeal for members to resolve their differences over expanding the U.N. Security Council by September, saying he now wants the issue settled by Christmas.

"If they are not able to resolve it before the summit (in September), the issue is not going to die," he said. "They will have to pursue it and, I hope, resolve it before we all go away for Christmas," Annan said. 

The Chinese ambassador said that back in March, Annan had asked members to resolve their differences over expanding the U.N. Security Council by September through a forced vote. Wang said realities on the ground indicate Annan had misjudged the complexity of the issue.

"Now he has set a new time limit. I don't think it is appropriate." Wang Guangya told Xinhua News Agency in an interview Friday at the UN headquarters in New York.

He said while China understands Annan's intension to accelerate the UN Security Council reform by setting a time limit, China opposes setting an artificial timetable for such an important but very complex issue because a forced vote without consensus would split the UN as well as the Security Council.

The Chinese envoy said member states should be allowed more time to reach the broadest consensus possible.

He reiterated that China has always supported the reform of the UN Security Council and proposed more seats for developing countries, and a louder voice for medium-sized and small countries, especially African countries.

(CRI.com August 13, 2005)