UNSC Veto Power Reforms and Issues

 UNSC Veto Power Reforms and Issues

            The United States Security Council (UNSC) has five permanent members who are; the United States, United Kingdom, China, Russia, formerly known as the Soviet Union and France, commonly known as P5. Voices have been constantly heard asking for reforms, gaining a new momentum day by day since the end of the cold war in the year 1989 (Kochler, 1995). The UNSC activities of achieving and maintaining peace have been criticized widely especially because it is the most important political organization internationally as well as the most powerful organization within the United Nations (UN).

Creation of the veto power and its scope

            The veto power of the United Nations Security Council is the unconditional power that the selected permanent members have to veto any resolution that is considered to be substantive. Adoption of a draft resolution can be done even in the absentia of a permanent member of the council (Simma & Brunner, 2004). The veto power however does not to votes that have a set out procedure as was determined by the permanent members. The veto power has received critics of being the most unjust and undemocratic personality of the United Nations.

The Security Council’s voting arrangements were born during the Yalta Conference in the month of February 1945 as a result of compromise between the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States, which led to unanimity of decision making by the permanent members in regard to settlement of disputes peacefully (Kochler, 1995). This resulted to other states’ protest against the privilege given to the five permanent members which they considered to be infringing to the states’ equality. The P-5 nonetheless emphasized that their acceptance of the membership was unconditional on their unconditional as well the fact that the veto power was a conditio sine qua for them to participate in creating the new world organization. This in other words meant that it was either the veto or no charter at all (San Francisco UNCIO, 12^TH June).

The power of veto has been accorded names such as “great power veto’, and ‘great power unanimity’. This is because the decisions of the United Nations Security Council require the votes of the permanent members which subsequently mean that any of those permanent members have the ability to block any draft resolutions on any matters that are considered to be substantive.  An affirmative vote of nine members as well as concurring votes of the permanent members is the requirement for any decisions of the Security Council to be made ( Fassbender 2004)

The main reason for establishment of the United Nation Security Council Veto was to prevent the United Nations from going against the principal members who were responsible for initiating it in the future. The veto also has the ability to block the process of selecting a Secretary-General. A permanent member can cast a vote to discourage a certain candidate which is equivalent to a veto and the candidate will subsequently withdraw from the race (Simma & Brunner, 2004). Each permanent member has used their veto at least one time while choosing a candidate for Secretary General. Such a vote is taken behind closed doors and is termed as a ‘hidden veto’ and a formal veto is usually not necessary (Nahory, 2004).

Reforms in the United Nation Security Council is an important lead to the reforms of the United Nations. Criticisms of the UNSC are narrowed down to three issues which are as follows; Underrepresentation of developing countries,  where the Council’s permanent members do not include countries from Latin America or Africa. This simply implies that today’s world is not reflected upon by the membership of the Security Council (Fassbender, 2004).

The P5 enjoy veto power which they unfortunately misuse and end up abusing their privileges. According to Fassbender (2004), the Security Council’s decision making process is often met by obstacles such as lack of transparency as well as inefficiency, and although there has been an attempt to improve its decision making, the progress on enlargement of the council over the past decade have been close to futile.

One of the results of abuse of the veto powers by the P5 members has been suggestions by many United Nation member states that their veto powers be cancelled. This has however been quite a challenge to achieve mainly because the council’s members will not agree to giving up their veto powers considering that they can veto the amendment of the United Nations Charter. The P5 literally blocks any resolutions to reform that do not follow any procedures.  A number of countries have therefore had no other option than to concede and only request that the P5 use of their veto powers is restricted, which is also quite a challenge to achieve.

Majority members of the UN consider the veto to be unjust and failure to respond the humanitarian crisis that took place in Rwanda in the year 1994 and Darfur in 2004 has been highly attributed to the P-5 veto powers.

Abuse of the Veto Power

            According to the Global Policy forum (2006), found that between the year 1946 and 2004, a total of  two hundred and fifty seven vetoes have been casted, which has subsequently led to rejection of approximately 200 draft resolutions. The invoking of vetoes can be redistributed among the P-5 as; Russia, 122 times, United States, 80 times, Britain and France, 32 and 18 times respectively while China invoked its veto 5 times which translates to less than one time each decade.

The major challenge that emerged is how to examine the use of the veto power. States do not always clarify their exact reason to cast their vote and when they give an explanation, it is not honest enough and does not match with the actual reason for their vote. Some members threaten to use their ‘hidden veto’ where certain statements or measures are put to the vote (Nahory, 2004). A hidden veto is that which is taken confidentially, usually behind closed doors and not in an open meeting. This makes it a huge challenge to examine how it has been used and identify the effects it has on the Security Council’s work. There is also the existence of a veto called the ‘double veto’ which has not been used since 1959 up to date (Gross, 2009).

Fassbender (2004), states that no consensus has been reached by the United Nation members on ways of adjusting the structure of the Security Council, specifically, increasing the number of permanent members despite agreement by all the UN members that the Security Council seriously needs some reforms. This issue touches on the worldwide redistribution of powers as well as the conflict of the North-South because countries base their actions on their specific national interests. There is however hopes for reforms in the future and we need to stay optimistic.

Works of Reference

1. FASSBENDER, ‘Pressure for Security Council Reform’, in D.M. MALONE , The UN Security Council: From the Cold War to the 21^st Century (London: Boulder), 2004, p 352
2. SIMMA and S. BRUNNER, ‘Article 27’ The Charter of the United Nations: Commentary Oxford edition, 2002, p 435

H Kochler,  “The Security Council’s First Fifty Years.” The Voting Procedure in The United Nations Security Council , 1995 p 507

San Francisco, UNCIO Vol. XI, P 495, 12^th June

1. Gross, “The Double Veto and the Four-power Statement on voting in the Security Council.” Havard Literature Review p 255
2. Nahory, “The Hidden Veto.” May 2004.