Introduction to the Security Council or what is this really?

Have you ever wondered how international peace is being kept? Or how so many wars are settled down? If so, find out that the Security Council is responsible for the maintenance of international peace and security. It has 15 Members, and each Member has 1 vote, all Member States being obligated to comply with Council decisions.

In case there is a threat to the peace or an act of aggression, the Security Council has to settle it by peaceful means and has to recommend methods of adjustment or terms of settlement. Sometimes, it can also resort to imposing sanctions or authorizing the use of force in order to maintain international peace and security.

What does the Security Council really do?

Besides maintaining international peace, the Security Council has three other main purposes, including developing friendly relationships among nations, being a centre of harmonizing the actions of nations or cooperating to solve international problems and promoting respect for human rights.

When dealing with crises around the world, the Security Council takes many factors into account, such as whether there is a ceasefire in place and the parties have committed themselves to a peace process intended to reach a political settlement, or whether a clear political goal exists and if it can be reflected in the mandate or not.

They establish a peace operation by adopting a resolution, which sets out that mission’s mandate and size. They hold special meetings to discuss the work of specific operations and they can vote to an extend, amend, or end mission, as it deems appropriate. All members have to accept and carry out the decisions of the Security Council, having the sole power to take decisions that Member States are obligated to implement.

When and where are the meetings held?

The Security Council held its first session on 17 January 1946 at Church House, Westminster, London, but after that, it has taken permanent residence at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. It has also travelled to many cities, holding meetings in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in Panama City, Panama or in Geneva, Switzerland.

The sessions can be held at the call of the President at any deems necessary, but the interval between the sessions can’t be longer than 2 weeks. A representative of each of its members needs to be always present at UN Headquarters so that they can meet at any time.

What is the veto power? How are non-permanent members selected?

The Security Council has 15 members, out of which 5 are permanent (the People’s Republic of China the French Republic, the Russian Federation, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United States of America) and they are referred to as the P5 members, who hold the veto power. If one of the permanent members abstains or it is not present a draft resolution can still be adopted. However, this veto does not apply to “procedural” votes, since they are determined by the permanent members themselves. A permanent member can also block the selection of a Secretary-General. The veto power is controversial since opinions are shared. Some consider it a promoter of international stability, and a critical safeguard, while others think it is the most undemocratic element of the United Nations, as well as the main cause of inaction on war crimes and crimes against humanity, because it prevents UN action against the permanent members and their allies.

The rest of the members are selected from time to time, out of which 5 are elected yearly by the General Assembly for a two-year term, and 5 retire each year. The presidency is held by each member in rotation for a period of one month. The 10 non-permanent seats are chosen to achieve equitable representation among geographic regions: five for African and Asian States, one for Eastern European States, two for the Latin American and Caribbean States and two for Western European and other States.

Originally, there were 11 members of the Security Council, out of which 5 were permanent and 6 weren’t, but in 1963, the General Assembly recommended an amendment to the Charter to increase the membership of the Security Council, including the 5 original permanent members and 10 non-permanent members.

Which are the working methods of the Security Council?

Since the Security Council has to peacefully resolve international disputes, they can call on parties to seek solutions through negotiation, arbitration, or any other peaceful means. They can also take more assertive actions, such as imposing sanctions or authorizing the use of force.

The Council has authorized 54 peacekeeping operations in the years since the Cold War, many having to do with failing states, civil wars, or certain humanitarian emergencies and deploying to conflict zones in the absence of cease-fires or parties’ consent. Throughout the years, depending on the case, they have combined military operations with civilian tasks, including electoral assistance or legal administration.

Regional organizations also play an important role, sometimes prodding the Council to action and other times acting as subcontractors on its behalf.

What are sanctions? How are they applied?

The Security Council has the authority to impose measures not involving the use of armed force. They began to make regular use of sanctions in the early 1990s, starting with Iraq, Haiti and the former Yugoslavia. Only during last year (2020), the Council has imposed fourteen sanctions regimes, listing more than six hundred people and nearly three hundred entities.

Following the “Oil-for-Food” program, founded to ensure humanitarian services after Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait and the subsequent Gulf War, it has been discovered that some two thousand firms paid kickbacks totaling nearly $2 billion to the Iraqi government. So, sanctions appeared around the 1990s as a solution, targeting discrete economic and political matters and specific individuals deemed threats to international security. They have curtailed trade which might result into civil wars, for instance. Arms embargoes, travel bans, asset freezes and import/export bans on individual goods are now the norm.

However, targeted sanctions have raised human rights concerns of their own. So, in order to be delisted from the blacklist, people, entities and items need an affirmative vote of sanctions committees, in which all Security Council members are represented.

Overall, the Security Council is responsible for international peace and security, having 15 members which need to meet regularly to assess threats to international security. It addresses issues such as include civil wars, natural disasters, arms control or terrorism.