Andrew Pam

2022-02-27 00:13:21

It’s ironic that Russia holds the presidency of the Security Council, the UN’s body delegated to make peace, just as Russia is perceived by many to be the greatest threat to that peace. Ukraine’s ambassador, Sergiy Kyslytsya, has even suggested that Russia should be removed from the Security Council. But can this happen?

The Security Council was established by the 1945 UN Charter and comprises 15 members. Ten rotating non-permanent countries are elected by the UN General Assembly to do a two-year term on the Security Council. Five members – the USSR (now Russia), Republic of China (now People’s Republic of China), the US, UK and France – have the status of permanent members and so have a veto on any vote before the Council.

There is no mechanism to remove a permanent member of the Security Council written into the UN Charter. The word “permanent” was to mean just that. But there is a process to remove a country from the United Nations. That would require a vote of the UN General Assembly based on the recommendation of the Security Council. This has never been done. And given that Russia has a veto on the Security Council, the Council cannot recommend Russia’s removal without Russia’s agreement. This simply will not happen. So no, Russia cannot be kicked out.

But is Russia validly there at all? This is Ukraine’s question. The UN Charter says that the USSR, not Russia, is the permanent member. While no permanent member of the Security Council has ever been removed, two have changed – and it is worth analysing how and why, not just for the current crisis but for the next one surely coming over Taiwan.

Because the two changes were China and Russia.

Ukraine invasion: should Russia lose its seat on the UN Security Council?