Explained: What is veto and UN regulations surrounding this political right
Recently, Russia vetoed a resolution concerning Ukraine’s independence during a session at the United Nations Security Council. The resolution demanded that Russia immediately stop its attack on Ukraine and withdraw all its troops. This resolution was constituted by the permanent members of the UN Security Council excluding Russia. Its permanent members, known as the Permanent or Big Five are: Russia, China, France, USA and UK. They are also the permanent members of the UN General Assembly.
Under the war circumstances, the United Nations General Assembly convened a rare emergency special session, early this month, to counter this veto. The 14 member UN Security Council (including 5 permanent members) in presence of 193 member states of the UN General Assembly were called upon to re-vote and pass the resolution. As per the procedural election, the resolution required votes from 9 non-permanent members of the UN Security Council who are elected for a period of two years. This is because, none of the five permanent UN members could exercise their vetoes, as one of them is involved in the current state of conflict. The 9 non-permanent members who re-voted included: India, Brazil, Albania, Ghana, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico, Norway and UAE. After this, the resolution was passed and Russia was condemned for causing a global crisis and was told to take a step back. But so far, they haven’t agreed to the resolution. Since 1950, only 10 such emergency sessions have been conducted. Here’s what veto stands for and why is it not applicable in the UN General Assembly.
What does veto mean?
A veto is a negative vote and a political right to disapprove and in turn prohibit the process of a decision or a law in the making. It acts as a deciding factor during major political decisions. As per the United Nations, only its permanent members have the power to declare a veto, that ultimately differentiates them from UN’s non-permanent members. The Big Five have the power to exercise a veto as they are the only sovereign states to whom the UN Charter of 1945 grants a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
How is veto significant in UN Security Council?
As per the rules laid down in the UN Charter, all important decisions of the Security Council, one of the most powerful international bodies, have to be made by unanimous votes of the permanent members. In an unlikely case, one or more of the permanent members can block a draft resolution by using their power of veto to defend their own national or international interests or to uphold their foreign policies.
Why is veto not applicable in UN General Assembly special sessions?
According to UN regulation, if one of its five permanent members exercises veto, a resolution stands null and void. However, in case of UN General Assembly’s emergency special sessions, like the one that happened on 6th March 2022, vetoes cannot be applied. This is in complete adherence to the ‘Uniting for Peace’ resolution passed by the United Nations in 1950.
According to this resolution, in case the UN Security Council fails to exercise its primary duty of ensuring global peace and security because of the absence of unanimity among its five permanent members, the UN General Assembly can step in and solve the matter according to its own discretion. In fact, it gives the UN General Assembly the power to call for an emergency special session such as this. This is done at the request of the majority members (both permanent and non-permanent) of the UN Security Council and is primarily valid when the world is at a risk of genocide, war crimes and other crimes against humanity.