Volume XVI – Number 2
Robert S. Junn
Abstract:
Recently, both within and outside of the U.N., there have been serious debates on certain proposals which are aimed at changing the voting structure of the security council. However, neither the proponents nor the opponents of these proposals provide any evidence whatsoever about the consequences of the change. This paper has dealt with two critical areas: 1) the role of the veto in the functioning of the U.N. is analyzed and articulated and 2) recent proposals to change the voting structure of the Council are analyzed and their theoretical consequences are identified.
The voting procedure, especially the veto provision, of the security council is one of the most controversial issues of the United Nations system. Critics assert that the voting procedure is the primary cause of the paralysis of the security council, and they advocate complete reform. The proponents of the procedure defend it as the cornerstone of the Organization. Recently, there have been serious efforts to revise the voting procedure. The objective of this paper is two-fold: to analyze the role of the veto in the functioning of the security council and to examine two major ideas for possible structural changes and their theoretical consequences.
