Can Russia’s Un Veto Be Removed?

Abstract

This article examines the real status of the veto power in the UN Security Council in the light of its use by Russia and also offers ways to resolve the stalemate that has risen due to it. After the collapse of the USSR, its place as a permanent member of the UN Security Council was taken by Russia, without going through the procedure of admission to the Organization. Such a political decision led to Russia receiving the veto power in the UN Security Council and its abuse of this power. Russian military aggression against Ukraine raised the issue of veto reform before the UN. It is necessary to recall the essence of the veto power and develop legal instruments that would help to overcome the current situation and allow the UN, especially the Security Council, to act and achieve its tasks. The purpose of the article is to answer the question of whether it is possible to remove the veto power from the Russian Federation in the UN Security Council. Based on the rules of international law the article presents various ways of solving this issue with reasons of their feasibility and the possibility of their application. The author presents and analyzes the following options: 1) recognition of the veto power as illegal, 2) restriction of the use of the veto power, and 3) making appropriate changes to the UN Charter. Also, the obligation of the Russian Federation as a member of the UN Security Council to abstain from voting on issues connected with its aggression against Ukraine is considered, in particular, Russia's presidency in the UN Security Council in April 2023, the voting procedure and abstention from voting by members of the UN Security Council and the presiding country. The author of the article also addresses the issue of Russia's exclusion from the UN or suspension of its membership based on Article 5 of the UN Charter. In this context it is considered the possibility of China's veto on voting about exclusion of Russia from the UN and the possibility of reaching a compromise in this regard. Along with that, as an option for solving the problem of Russia's veto power in the UN Security Council, the author refers to the document of the General Assembly "Permanent mandate to conduct debates of the General Assembly when the veto is imposed in the Security Council" and the procedure indicated in it to overcome the imposed veto. In the article, the author raises the issue of the possibility of creating a new organization, as it was in 1945 with the creation of the United Nations and the termination of the League of Nations. In the conclusion, the author states that currently there is no consensus on the issue of reforming the veto power without amending the UN Charter, creating a new global organization instead of the UN, or excluding Russia from the UN.