Community institution president sees it “necessary and urgent” to reform the body to convict a member who “ignites an unprovoked and unjustified war”
The uproar is growing in the UN to punish Russia for the aggression against Ukraine that has shocked the world, but also to reform the multilateral organizations that should have taken their toll. This Friday, European Council President Charles Michel described this reform as “necessary and urgent”.
Since Russia is one of five members with a permanent seat and veto power on the Security Council, it prevented this body dedicated to maintaining international peace and security from condemning the country in March. This resolution had to be transferred to the plenary of the General Assembly, which is much more democratic because it is composed of the 193 member states, but without binding character. It was clear to everyone that you cannot be both judge and jury. The question is how to solve this cardinal sin of the UN.
Michel believes that “when a permanent member of the Security Council unleashes an unprovoked and unjustified war, condemned by the General Assembly, his suspension from the Security Council should be automatic.” For many, this will be little, as the general consensus coincides with their view that “the current system is not inclusive and representative enough,” something US President Joe Biden said in his address on Wednesday. But the very five countries that have that privilege will have to give up, and that will not be easy.
“A strong multilateral system requires mutual trust,” emphasized the Belgian politician who represented Europe. With his intervention, there are already three powers seeking to curtail that power – the US, France and the UK – leaving the decision to Russia and China at a time when both countries are on the defensive. Their representatives will be able to speak tomorrow, Saturday, although from what they said Thursday at a Security Council meeting convened by France to discuss the crisis in Ukraine, that kind of cooperation is not expected in the hypothetical UN reform.
Russia insists the West was silent while US aided aggression against the pro-Russian population in Ukraine’s breakaway regions. China says it is for peace but insists it will not interfere in the sovereign affairs of other countries. Michel believes this war is everyone’s business, and blames it for exacerbating the pandemic crisis and putting nearly a fifth of humanity at risk of poverty and famine.
To prevent a repeat of such a situation, he calls for “more food sovereignty”, especially for Africa and Latin America, and an investment effort in renewable energy sources that prevent other countries from using energy as a weapon of war again. The present moment, in his view, is a turning point in human history that once again confirms the observation of Winston Churchill in 1946, with reference to the failure of the League of Nations to prevent World War II. “The League of Nations – forerunner of the United Nations – did not fail because of its principles or views. It failed because those principles were abandoned by the states that founded it,” he paraphrased. For the UN, this is the moment of truth.
Source: La Verdad
I am an experienced and passionate journalist with a strong track record in news website reporting. I specialize in technology coverage, breaking stories on the latest developments and trends from around the world. Working for Today Times Live has given me the opportunity to write thought-provoking pieces that have caught the attention of many readers.
