In the ongoing session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA), France has made a proposal to enhance the functioning of the UN, especially in dealing with collective security and the use of veto.
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France → make → veto
France has been advocating that the use of veto in the UN Security Council (UNSC) be “regulated” when it comes to dealing with humanitarian crises such as in Sudan, Lebanon or in cases of genocide.
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it → advocate → genocide
France believes that the use of veto is not a matter of “privilege” but of “responsibility”.
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use → believe → responsibility
So, should permanent membership and veto powers of the UN Security Council be abolished?
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membership → abolish → Council
Amitabh Mattoo and Swaran Singh discuss the question in a conversation moderated by Kallol Bhattacherjee.
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Mattoo → discuss → Bhattacherjee
Is it realistically possible to imagine an UNSC where veto would be “regulated” as the French proposal suggested?
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proposal → imagine → UNSC
What Emmanuel Macron (President of France) articulated in the UNGA on September 22 is not entirely new.
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articulated → articulate → September
What we are seeing is really a renewed push behind what used to be called the French-Mexican initiative, first launched in 2015, under which permanent members of the SC would voluntarily refrain from using the veto in situations involving genocide, crimes against humanity, and large-scale war crimes.
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members → see → humanity
It’s not an attempt to abolish the veto or amend the UN charter.
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It → ’ → charter
It’s essentially an exercise in self-restraint by the P5 (permanent members of the UNSC: U.S., U.K., France, China and Russia).
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It → ’ → UNSC
What gives the initiative fresh significance is not just Mr. Macron’s speech, but the political momentum behind it.
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gives → give → it
France and Mexico both announced this week that 128 states now support the declaration, with 21 joining in the last four months.
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21 → announce → months
And the significant part is that the U.K., another P5 country, has now joined France in accepting the principle.
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U.K. → join → principle
So for the first time, two of the five permanent members have committed themselves to this form of voluntary restraint.
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two → commit → restraint
Also read | Expanding permanent category with veto critical to real reform of UNSC: India
But I think we should also distinguish between three different questions which are often conflated — the use of the veto, accountability for the use of the veto, and the much larger question of reform of the Security Council.
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which → read → Council
Mr. Macron’s initiative addresses only the first.
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initiative → address → first
It says in effect, even if the veto remains, surely there must be circumstances of exceptional human suffering in which a permanent member agrees not to exercise it.
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member → say → it
It is, as I said, a modest incremental proposition institutionally, but potentially significant normatively in terms of what we want the world to be like.
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world → say → what
It seeks to change the political behaviour of the five permanent countries without undertaking what seems to be the almost impossible task of rewriting the charter.
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what → seek → charter
So, it’s a modest proposal and it has got some momentum, but whether it translates into reality, we’ll have to wait and see.
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we → ’ → reality
Does the current situation in UNGA indicate that the P5 is now divided between the France-U.K. and Russia-U.S.-China factions on the use of veto?
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P5 → indicate → veto
Therefore, I think it is easier for France and the U.K. to make that principled position saying that the P5, which wield veto power, should be able to better regulate or manage how fundamentally the power is utilised; to make sure that the UNSC is able to take action and that it does not get paralysed.
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it → think → action
In fact, the contradiction of 2013 itself was driven by the fact that in the civil war in Syria, Chinese and Russian vetoes were making it impossible for the UNSC to pass any resolution condemning Syria.
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UNSC → drive → Syria
After the August 2013 chemical weapons attack in Ghouta in September, the then French President Francois Hollande had in his speech proposed a ‘code of good conduct’ for the UNSC.
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Hollande → propose → UNSC
This is where, for the first time, a kind of proposition was made that the P5 could voluntarily restrain the use of veto in cases of genocide, crimes against humanity or larger war crimes.
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P5 → make → humanity
I think the attempt was to skirt amending the UN Charter and still make it much more contemporaneous.
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it → think → Charter
None of the P5 are talking of eliminating veto power that they have.
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they → talk → that
There are multiple versions among the five as to how they wish to reform the UN Security Council.
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they → be → Council
Also read | We must reform the Security Council: UN chief Guterres in final UNGA address
As an ideal, we believe that we live in a world of sovereign equality, but in reality, because of the way power is distributed, it is impossible for any international organisation to survive — not just become effective — but even survive if they happen to take a decision against any of the major powers.
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they → read → powers
Incidentally, veto is not a word mentioned in the UN Charter and it was created through a separate mechanism.
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it → mention → mechanism
But the premise is that any international organisation must not take a decision against the fundamental interests of any major power if they wish to survive.
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they → take → power
While doubts persist about the veto, the question is will veto continue to be extended to new members of the UNSC whenever they are inducted?
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they → persist → UNSC
Apart from Mr. Macron’s or the France-Mexican initiative, there have been incremental reforms which fall short of trying to amend the UN Charter.
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which → fall → Charter
There was an earlier Liechtenstein initiative, which was adopted by the UNGA in 2022, which took a different route.
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which → be → route
It did not prevent a permanent member from exercising the veto.
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It → prevent → veto
Instead, whenever a veto was cast, the General Assembly would be convened within 10 working days to debate the issue.
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Assembly → cast → issue
In other words, a veto will no longer be allowed to simply terminate the conversation.
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veto → allow → conversation
The permanent member concerned would have to explain and defend its action on the floor of the UNGA.
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member → concern → UNGA
That was one initiative which was passed by the UNGA.
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which → pass → UNGA
This goes beyond the P5 and asks members of the Security Council, including the non-permanent members, not to vote against credible action designed to prevent or halt genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
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This → go → humanity
…and 12 more, not listed.
The Aporia
