The four countries agreed in a meeting Tuesday to support each other's bids for a permanent spot on the United Nations' most powerful body.

"The Security Council must reflect the realities of the international community in the 21st century," they said in a statement issued on the sidelines of the annual General Assembly ministerial meeting.

Proponents say broadening representation on the 15-nation council, which includes only five permanent members with veto power, would strengthen the moral authority of decisions taken by the group.

"The Iraq crisis has shown us that the international community remains attached to a multilateral system for maintaining international peace and security, but that the structures currently in place are no longer appropriate," Swiss President Joseph Deiss told the General Assembly.

"There is now a clear need for reform and for strengthening the means of joint action," he said, adding that he supported enlarging the council but opposed letting any countries have the right to veto decisions.

Brazil, Germany, India and Japan also called for reforming the United Nations as a whole in their statement, pointing out that membership in the 191-member world body has increased nearly four-fold since it was founded in 1945.

They said the Security Council "must be representative, legitimate and effective. It is essential that the Security Council includes, on a permanent basis, countries that have the will and the capacity to take on major responsibilities with regard to the maintenance of international peace and security."

The four countries also said that Africa the poorest continent "must also be represented in the permanent membership of the Security Council." African leaders are debating which country from the vast continent might get a permanent Security Council seat if one is made available.

Tanzania stepped forward as a candidate for a nonpermanent seat on the council, saying it would seek election before August.

"Tanzania is a faithful and active member of the United Nations and we reaffirm our readiness to work with our fellow members in addressing global concerns," Tanzania's President Benjamin Mkapa said in his General Assembly address.

Japan, which is the second-largest contributor to the United Nations after the United States, has long campaigned for a permanent seat on the council. But Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi took the campaign to a new level when he adopted it as his pet project ahead of a U.N. report that will address ways to reform the United Nations.

The report, expected in December, will be the basis of a major report by the secretary-general to U.N. member states in the spring. Annan said Monday he wants world leaders to come to the General Assembly next year and be prepared to take action on its recommendations.

Koizumi, who spoke to the General Assembly after the meeting attended by Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer, agreed on the need for quick action.

"In recent years, the role of the Security Council has expanded dramatically in scope and nature," Koizumi said. "The Security Council must improve its representation to better reflect today's world."

The council's permanent members include the United States, China, Russia, Britain and France, the only countries with veto power on the decision-making body. The 10 other council members are chosen for two-year terms by regional groups.

The statement avoided mention of the veto power. Several suggestions for Security Council reform would add permanent members without that authority, along with some new nonpermanent members.

"The Security Council is the only source of legitimate action in the field of international peace and security," Silva said in his remarks to the General Assembly. "But its composition must reflect today's reality not perpetuate the post-World War II era."

President Bush's administration has supported Japan in its drive for a permanent Security Council seat, and India got a boost for its efforts from British Prime Minister Tony Blair earlier this week.

photo credit and caption:

India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, left, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, second from left, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, second from right, and German Vice-Chancellor Joschka Fischer shake hands Tuesday Sept. 21, 2004 in New York. The four met to discuss permanent membership of their four countries in the United Nations Security Council. (AP Photo/Don Emmert, Pool)