British PM calls for radical world reforms to reflect rise of Asia

INDIA, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called Monday for the radical reform of world institutions to help meet the new challenges of the 21st century, in particular the rise of India and China.

On a two-day visit to New Delhi, Brown told business leaders the changes should be inspired by the post-war "visionaries" who set up the United Nations and other bodies like the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. But he said the "new world order" should be more representative of what he called "the biggest shift in the balance of economic power in the world in two centuries"the Asian economic boom.

"Only with international institutions that promote cooperation out of shared interest and predictability and accountability can large numbers of states consistently work together for the benefit of all," he said.

"But to succeed now, the post-war rules of the game and the post-war international institutionsfit for the Cold War and a world of just 50 states must be radically reformed to fit our world of globalisation; 200 states, and emerging single market place, unprecedented individual autonomy and the increasing power of informal networks." He added: "We can and must do more to make our global institutions more representative. I support changes to the IMF, World Bank and the G-8 that reflect the rise of India and Asia."

The keynote speech was billed by his office as an outline of one of Brown's main foreign policy priorities, and an attempt to secure Indian backing for his plan due to its growing clout on the world stage.

Britain already supports moves to make India a permanent member of the UN Security Council a reflection of its status as an emerging economic powerhouse increasingly courted by world leaders.

"The task ahead is to agree for our time the rules that can make globalisation a force for hope and progress for people," Brown said.

"I believe that only in this way can globalisation become what it should be: a force for justice on a global scale."

Brown arrived in India from China on Sunday. Both countries are among the world's fastest growing economies and like many European countries, Britain is keen to court them to boost lucrative trade ties and other links.

According to Britain's Foreign Office, relations between the two countries are at their healthiest ever. Brown indicated Sunday that Britain the former colonial power here until 1947 was no longer the dominant partner.

New Delhi, Monday, AFP