02 Feb 2023 Reforms in UNSC  

UNSC Reforms

This article covers “Daily current events “and the topic is about ‘demand for UNSC reforms’ which is in the news, it covers “International relations” In GS-2, and the following content has relevance for UPSC. 

For Prelims: About UNSC, Members of UNSC

For Mains: GS-2, issues associated with UNSC

Why in the news:

• According to the president of the UN General Assembly, the UN Security Council (UNSC), which has been powerless to act since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, has become “paralyzed” and “dysfunctional” in its “present UNSC “

About UNSC Reforms

• The UN Charter established the Security Council in 1945. It is one of the six leading organizations of the UN.
• The UN’s remaining 5 institutions are the General Assembly (UNGA), the Trusteeship Council, the Economic and Social Council, the International Court of Justice, and the Secretariat.
• Its main responsibility is to support the maintenance of world peace and security.
• The council’s headquarters are in New York.

Members

• Five permanent members and ten non-permanent members chosen for two-year terms make up the council’s fifteen members.
• The five permanent members are the United States, the Russian Federation, France, China, and the United Kingdom.
• India became a non-permanent member of the UNSC last year (2021), making it a member for a record-breaking eighth time. It will be a council member from 2021 to 2022.

The General Assembly elects five of the 10 non-permanent members annually for a tenure of two years. According to regions, the 10 non-

• Permanent seats are distributed.
• Each month, the 15 council members that make up the body rotate who serves as president.

Voting power

• Each Security Council member is granted one vote. Including the permanent members who support the decision, the Security Council votes by a majority of nine members. If one of the five permanent members votes “no,” the resolution will not be adopted.
• Any UN member who is not a member of the Security Council is allowed to participate in discussions without having a voice whenever the Security Council finds that the member’s interests are particularly impacted.

Status of India

• India actively took part in the 1947–1948 formulation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and vociferously denounced racism in South Africa.
• India has contributed to the creation of policy on a range of issues, including the admittance of former colonies to the UN, resolving deadly conflicts in the Middle East, and maintaining peace in Africa.
• It has significantly aided the UN, especially in preserving international peace and security.
• India has taken part in 43 peacekeeping missions, sending more than 160,000 troops and a sizable number of police officers in all.
• India’s request for a permanent seat on the UNSC makes perfect sense considering its population, geography, Gross Domestic Product (GDP), economic potential, legacy of civilizations, cultural diversity, political system, and historical and current contributions to UN activities

What Obstacles Face UNSC Reforms?

• The General Assembly has a long history of heated debate. The 193 countries are divided into five negotiation groups, and they are attempting to balance one another out.
• The General Assembly’s work is equally as important to ensuring UN system reform as the permanent members of the UNSC.
• Although the permanent members acknowledge that they have “historically not been enthusiastic” about UN system change, they all agree that the Security Council needs to undergo improvements.

Related concerns on UNSC Reforms

• The UN Security Council has inadequate representation, which reduces its effectiveness. The most notable example is the absence of Africa, a continent with 54 countries.
• The current global issues are complex and interconnected. A major chunk of the world’s opinion is barred from attending the top security summit because economically and geopolitically relevant nations are underrepresented.
• Several significant nations, like South Africa, Germany, Brazil, and India, are conspicuously absent from the UNSC’s list of permanent members.
• Misuse of Veto Power: Many experts and the majority of States have constantly condemned the use of the veto as a “self-selected club of the privileged” that prohibits the Council from making important decisions if it offends one of the P-5 members.
• Furthermore, the elite institutions that currently control the global security environment are ineffective.

Geopolitical competition among the P5

• Due to the geopolitical rivalry among the permanent members, the UNSC has been unable to develop effective strategies to address global concerns.
• Three poles on the edge of the earth, the P5 members—the United States, Russia, and China—are the epicenters of numerous geopolitical crises (Taiwan Issue and Russia-Ukraine War).

A danger to the State’s Sovereignty

• The principal international body in charge of keeping peace and resolving conflicts is the UNSC. In contrast to the General Assembly, its resolutions are equally enforceable across the membership.
• This means that, if necessary, any state may implement laws like imposing penalties in order to violate another state’s sovereignty.

Way ahead

• Democratization of UNSC: It is crucial to address the power imbalance between the P5 and other UNSC members in order to make the council more democratic and give it more power to oversee global peace, security, and order.

UNSC enlargement

• The UNSC needs to go through significant reforms, including expanding its permanent and non-permanent seats, in order to tackle the complex and dynamic challenges to international peace and security.
• A fair representation of all regions is required in the UNSC for the controlling authority and influence over nations to be decentralized.
• The UNSC’s decision-making processes will be decentralized, allowing it to develop into a more democratic and representative organization.

India’s Purpose

• India, one of the UNSC’s current non-permanent members, might start by drafting a resolution that provides a comprehensive list of reform suggestions.
• India organized a side event at the UN General Assembly in September 2022 in New York City as part of their campaign for UN reforms. It combined the L-69 and G-4 groups. India, which is currently in charge of the area, must rekindle its ties with these longtime partners by raising the concerns of the “global south” over peace and security in the UNSC.

Source:

• The Hindu

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