Today, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is recognized as an authoritative body for addressing global conflict and peace, and for sanctioning nations that violate the UN Charter; however, its structure is rooted in the post-World War II geopolitical landscape and therefore does not reflect current global power distributions. Since the end of the Second World War, there have been tremendous shifts in global power distributions, with developing economies gaining increasing amounts of influence over international political decisions. At the same time, the legacy of 20th-century great power dominance continues to dominate how the UNSC makes its decisions, creating an increasing amount of discontent within member states who are openly questioning whether the UNSC can legitimately represent the current geopolitical realities.
Calls for reform of the UNSC have intensified in recent years, although meaningful reform has proven difficult to accomplish. The UNSC continues to exert a great deal of influence over many significant global events; however, the continued existence of representation gaps is likely to further undermine the ability of the UNSC to maintain its credibility over time. Therefore, there is a growing demand for developing countries to be included in significant decision-making processes regarding international diplomatic decisions related to the UNSC.
Outdated Structure Strengthens Calls for UNSC Reform
The structural imbalance of the council is rooted in its permanent membership. The five members possessing permanent seats and a veto are the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, and France. The makeup of the council remains reflective of post WWII geopolitics, which have significantly changed today; thus, nations such as India, Brazil, and Germany have become more influential today than in previous decades.
In addition to France and Germany, Japan plays an important role in the global economy and is part of this group without permanent representation. Africa and Latin America also have no permanent member to represent their interests. Thus, the underrepresentation of entire geographic regions compounded by developing nations that have been historically excluded from decision-making processes at the executive level of international governance creates continuing doubt as to how equitable and how legitimate decisions made by the council’s member states may be. Therefore, the reform of representation on the UN Security Council is a central demand of the International Community.
Veto power often blocks effective international action
The system of vetoing remains controversial within the council. Permanent members of the council can stop votes from occurring. Therefore, political rivalries hurt the ability to make decisions. Major powers often use vetoing to maintain their strategic interests; thus, the council has been ineffective throughout many global crises (especially if there is military conflict between large nations). The blockage and dysfunction caused by such conflicts will cause the council to lose much of its ability to provide global security.
Countless countries around the world publicly oppose the current operating structure of vetoes. Those who condemn this system say it places the individual nation’s power above that of other nations working together. Permanent member nations often defend the system of vetoes strongly as they believe this prevents direct wars between major powers; however, smaller countries see these veto powers as being an inequitable part of the overall global structure. Thus, arguments for reforming the system of vetoing will continue to build as the council will not meet the needs of the global society.
Reform efforts face resistance despite growing global demand
Several countries want to see the number of members in the council increased. Countries such as India, Brazil, Germany, and Japan have been working to promote changes and shifts in membership types, i.e., new permanent and non-permanent members. Members from various parts of Africa are also calling for permanent representation. However, in order to change the council’s structure and membership type, any proposed changes have to be approved by current permanent members, which creates a huge barrier.
Current members are unwilling to give up any of their current advantages. Because of this, very few of the proposed reforms are ever completed past the negotiation phase. Because of this, creating a political consensus between competing interests around the globe is extremely difficult. The level of criticism directed toward the council continues to grow, and many are arguing that reform is necessary for the council to maintain relevance moving forward. If the council does not change in some way, there is a good chance it will lose its credibility on a global level. Geopolitical competition also adds to the difficulty of making realistic, beneficial reforms to the council design and structure. Without meaningful UNSC reform, the council risks losing credibility in an increasingly multipolar world.
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