Security Council reforms called for by Finland President
The Finnish President, Alexander Stubb, has called for a number of changes to the United Nations. He has called for an expansion of the UN Security Council, abolition of the single state veto power, and the suspension of any member that engages in an “illegal war” such as Russia in its war on Ukraine.
Stubb leads the Finnish foreign policy and has said that he would add his voice to calls for reform at the UN General Assembly in New York. The assembly will discuss the composition of the global body’s Security Council.
Five permanent and ten rotating member states make up the security council. Its goal is to keep global peace but geopolitical rivalries have presented challenges. These include the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.
In an interview on 17th September, he proposed that the number of permanent members be doubled from five to ten, with one more nation from Latin America as well as two from Africa and two from Asia.
“No single state should have veto power in the UN Security Council,” he told Reuters. Currently, the five veto-wielding nations are Britain, China, France, Russia, and the USA. America has also backed the inclusion of two permanent seats for countries from Africa.
Any member that engages in an illegal war, “such as Russia is in right now in Ukraine,” said Stubb, should be kicked off.
He acknowledged that these calls were “beyond what is usually said from small member states”, but added that the big nations would otherwise not propose weakening their own influence. So they talk the talk, but don’t walk the walk.”
He also added that he hoped others would take this plan forward by the 80th birthday of the UN in 2025. Changes to the Security Council membership would need approval from two thirds of the General Assembly including the five veto-holding nations.
“My basic message is that if countries from the global South, from Latin America, from Africa, from Asia, do not get agency in the system, they will turn their backs against the United Nations. And that we do not want,” he said.
