UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL (Syllabus: GS Paper 2 – International Org.)

Context: The United Nations Security Council president has referred the Palestinian Authority’s application to become a full member of the world body to the committee on the admission of new member.

United Nations Security Council

• About: It is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN).
• Formation: By the UN Charter in 1945.
• Objective: Primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security.
• Members: 15 (5 permanent + 10 non-permanent members).

oThe Security Council consists of ten elected members, and five permanent members--China, the United States, France, the United Kingdom, and the Russian Federation. The current and past membership of the Security Council since 1946 can be found in this section.

• Headquarters: New York, USA.
• UNSC Presidency: Held by each of the 15 members in turn for one month, based on English alphabetical order.
• Eligibility for Presidency: Both permanent and non-permanent members are eligible for the UNSC presidency.
• Criteria to become full Member: For any country to become a full member of the UN, the international body’s charter says the country’s membership first has to be approved by the Security Council and then it would need to get the support of two-thirds of the 190 members of the UN General Assembly.
• Presidential Powers: In the UNSC, the Council President has a broad range of procedural powers: They can call and preside over meetings, approve the UN body agenda for the month, issue presidential statements, decide the content & and theme of debates, etc.
• India as a non-permanent member: 8 times. The latest membership was for the year 2021-22.