President Hu Jintao said on Thursday that UN reform, a hot topic at the world body's 60th anniversary summit, should be realized through democratic consultation in an active and prudent manner.

"The new international situation presents new challenges to the UN," Hu said at an interactive roundtable focusing on its reform. He urged member countries "to seize the historical opportunity to introduce rational and necessary reforms" so that the organization can better fulfill its mandate under the UN Charter.

It is the fourth time Hu has addressed the three-day UN summit. On the second day of the summit, heads of government and state from more than 170 countries stressed in their speeches the need to reform the UN, to fight terrorism and to continue efforts to achieve the UN's Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

As the reform has a key role in the organization's future, Hu said they should focus on the overall mission and use it as the yardstick to evaluate all reform proposals.

To help the reform gain a solid foundation and garner broad support, it is necessary to have full deliberation and extensive consultation where opinions of different parties are respected and concerns mutually accommodated, Hu said.

He warned against imprudent activities in carrying out UN reform to "ensure the results can withstand the test of time and practice."

For proposals on which consensus has been or can be reached, decisions may be made promptly for their implementation without delay, Hu said. "But for proposals where major differences still exist, a further exchange of views should be conducted to seek consensus."

Last but not least, reform should be pushed forward on all fronts with clear priorities, he said.

"Spanning such areas as security, development, the rule of law and institutional reform, UN reform needs an integrated approach," Hu said. The views of developing countries, which account for two-thirds of the UN membership, should be taken into full account and their interests truly safeguarded.

Measures to give developing countries greater representation and to help them realize the MDGs should be placed at the very top of the reform agenda, he said.

"China is firmly committed to UN reform," he concluded, adding that the country "stands ready to join hands with other member states in ensuring that the progress of the reform is sound, thus enabling the UN to make greater contributions to the lofty cause of peace and development for mankind."

Hu also held bilateral meetings with Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, Macedonian President Branko Crvenkovski, Gabonese President El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba and Swedish Prime Minister Goran Persson Thursday on the sideline of the UN summit.

(China Daily September 17, 2005)