[News Terms] UN Secretary-General Invokes 'UN Charter Article 99'

Article 99 of the UN Charter grants the UN Secretary-General the authority to bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter that may threaten international peace and security.

On the 6th (local time), UN Secretary-General Ant?nio Guterres invoked Article 99 of the UN Charter to call for a ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian armed group Hamas. With the Gaza Strip facing a humanitarian crisis, Bloomberg News and others reported that Secretary-General Guterres, who took office in 2017, has deployed the strongest measure available to the UN Secretary-General. It is the first time in 52 years since the conflict between India and Pakistan, which led to the establishment of Bangladesh in 1971, that a UN Secretary-General has invoked Article 99.

Ant?nio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, is delivering a speech at the opening ceremony of the 27th Conference of the Parties (COP27) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, held in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, in November last year.
[Photo by EPA/ Yonhap News]

In a letter sent to the Security Council under Article 99 of the UN Charter, Secretary-General Guterres expressed concern that the situation in the Gaza Strip is "rapidly deteriorating into a catastrophe," warning that public order is about to completely collapse, which would result in less aid reaching the region. He also cautioned that "much worse scenarios could unfold," including the spread of epidemics and increased pressure on Gaza residents to flee to neighboring countries. He stated, "We are facing a serious risk of collapse of the humanitarian system," and criticized that this war could exacerbate the existing threats to international peace and security.

The invocation of Article 99 by the UN Secretary-General signifies that the current international situation is severe enough to threaten international peace and security. Although the clause that allows the Secretary-General to "bring attention to the Security Council" does not carry strong enforcement power by itself, the developments following the invocation of Article 99 are never trivial.

The Security Council, composed of the five permanent members?the United States, China, Russia, France, and the United Kingdom?and 15 non-permanent members serving two-year terms, must convene upon the Secretary-General’s invocation of Article 99 to devise appropriate measures to address the issue at hand. These measures can include diplomatic actions and even military intervention. However, due to the political dynamics among the five permanent members, any proposed measures can be vetoed, leading to criticism that the invocation merely serves to "bring attention" without substantive action.

Residents are walking through the war-torn city in Gaza City, Gaza Strip.
[Photo by AFP/Yonhap News]

Major international media reported that Arab countries are leveraging Secretary-General Guterres’s invocation to pressure the Security Council to call for a ceasefire within days. The United Arab Emirates (UAE), a Security Council member, submitted a draft resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in response to Guterres’s letter, and it is reported that Secretary-General Guterres plans to brief the Security Council on the matter, aiming for a vote on the draft resolution on the 8th.

For the resolution to pass, it must receive the support of at least nine of the 15 Security Council members, and none of the five permanent members?the United States, China, Russia, the United Kingdom, and France?can exercise their veto. The United States and Israel are reportedly opposed to the ceasefire, arguing that it would only benefit Hamas, making the outcome of the ceasefire resolution highly anticipated.