UN Showing Only Division Amid War... The Community Has Disappeared [Ukraine Shockwave⑪]

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] "Where is the security that the United Nations (UN) Security Council (UNSC) is supposed to guarantee?"

Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine, said this in a speech to the UN Security Council on April 5 (local time). He strongly criticized the UNSC for not properly carrying out activities aimed at "peace," questioning where the peace that the UN is supposed to guarantee is amid the current Ukraine war.

In fact, Ant?nio Guterres, UN Secretary-General, tried to act as a mediator after Russia's airstrikes on Ukraine on February 24 but has not been able to fulfill a proper role. He visited Ukraine and Russia, appealing that "the war must end," but since the outbreak of the Ukraine war, the UN has been continuously criticized as an international organization that cannot restrain the war or missiles. The notion of the UN's "uselessness" is gaining traction. Currently, the UN is focusing on humanitarian support issues such as the refugee crisis in Ukraine and the food shortage crisis caused by the war.

For the UN to play a substantive role in this war, the Security Council must act. The UN Security Council holds the authority to make key decisions for the UN and impose obligations on member states. The current permanent members of the Security Council are the United States, the United Kingdom, France, China, and Russia, and unanimous approval is required for any resolution to be adopted. The permanent members, composed of the five victorious countries of World War II in 1945, have remained unchanged to this day. Because Russia is included as a permanent member of the Security Council, resolutions related to the Ukraine situation have repeatedly failed to be adopted. Instead, in March, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution demanding Russia's immediate withdrawal.

As the situation stands, discussions on Security Council reform continue to emerge. In February, the US House of Representatives pushed a resolution to expel Russia from the Security Council. President Zelensky also recently delivered a speech via video at a Security Council meeting, emphasizing that Russia should be punished as a terrorist state and expelled from its position as a permanent member of the UN Security Council.

However, reforming the UN Security Council also requires the consent of the permanent members, making it unrealistic. To change such provisions, the UN Charter, which recognizes the veto power of the permanent members, must be amended, but it is unlikely that other permanent members will pursue this.