Essay Sample on UN Security Council: Maintaining World Peace & Security

The UN Security Council is the most powerful United Nations body whose primary role under the UN Charter is to maintain international peace and security. UN Security Council has 15 members, and each member has one vote. In the event, there is a crisis around the world. The Security Council, on a case-by-case basis, can utilize the available options to respond. Understandably, the establishment of a peace operation is always achieved through the adoption of a Security Council resolution. Further, the Security Council always review a threatening dispute brought within its jurisdiction and determines whether the situation is a threat to the peace, breach of the peace or an act of aggression before taking appropriate action. Notably, this action of the Council is spelled out in Article 39, and the enforcement action is enshrined in Chapter VII.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

More fundamentally, upon a determination that there was a threat of peace or act of aggression, the Security Council under Article 41 may impose sanctions. Sanctions, as set out in Art 41, may include severance of diplomatic relations and complete or partial interruption of economic relations and vital means of communication such as postal, telegraphic, and radio. The UN members are always obligated to implement and enforce the imposed sanctions. Also, in cases where sanctions have been established to be ineffective, the Security Council may use force as spelled out in Article 42. The Security Council upon deciding to use force may demand the assistance of all or some member states as set out in Article48 or regional organizations such as NATO as enshrined in Art 53. In most instances, the Security Council mandates member States to act on its behalf to meet set goals.

Notably, with contemporary situations and world dynamics, the UN Security Council requires profound reforms to achieve its primary objective of maintaining peace and security globally. The Security Council should overhaul its structure and develop criteria that will create fairgrounds for every member contributing to peacekeeping irrespective of their geographical and economic size. More fundamentally, the scope of permanent membership on the Security Council should be extended to include countries with the largest democracy such as India and regional powerhouses such as Nigeria and Brazil. It should be noted that the five permanent members of the Security Council always use their veto power to determine atrocities that require humanitarian intervention. However, some of these countries, particularly China and Russia, are considered to be the worst human rights abusers. In light of this, expanding the scope of permanent membership will be critical in addressing some of the emerging humanitarian crisis.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Security Council should be reformed through consensus-based solutions to address modern world challenges. Allowing intergovernmental negotiations will undoubtedly develop the Council's framework in making vital contemporary decisions. More imperatively, the Security Council legitimacy and structures should be enriched to guarantee the achievement of its set goals. Moreover, the Security Council, through the member states, should develop elaborate mechanisms that will guide decision making regarding cases that require urgent humanitarian intervention and military action. Most recently, the Security Council has significantly failed in addressing crises in Syria and Yemen because of the moribund international protection system embedded in the UN Charter. Therefore, the design of the Council should be redefined and restructured to address the flaws that undermine the maintenance of international peace and security. Additionally, the Security Council's agenda-setting should be reorganized to ensure that it does not serve some member states' interests.