Oleksiy Volovych
October 15 at the session of the UN General Assembly, Ukraine was elected a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for Eastern European countries for the period 2016-2017. 177 delegations out of 193 UN member states voted “for”. 14 delegations did not vote. To elect Ukraine into the UN Security Council 129 votes were needed. Apart from Ukraine, a non-permanent members of the UN Security Council became also Japan, Egypt, Senegal and Uruguay.
The General Assembly annually elects five non-permanent members of the Security Council whose term of office is two years. As one of the 51 founding countries of the United Nations, over the 70 years of existence of this global international Organization, Ukraine has already thrice been a non-permanent member of the Security Council — in 1948-1949, in 1984-1985 and in 2000-2001.
The recognition of the authority of Ukraine in the international arena under the auspices of the United Nations was the decision of the Eastern European States to nominate for the post of President of the General Assembly in 1997-1998 the candidacy of the Foreign Minister of Ukraine Hennadiy Udovenko, who had previously worked for many years in the UN system: in 1965-1971 — as an employee of the United Nations Office at Geneva; in 1977-1980 — as Director of the Office (D-2) of the UN Secretariat; in 1985-1992 — as Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations.
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Note: The UN Security Council consists of 15 countries, five of which are permanent members: the USA, Russia, China, Britain and France. Under the UN Charter, the Security Council has the primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security. While the General Assembly takes advisory decisions, the UN Security Council's resolutions are mandatory. All UN Member States in accordance with the present Charter must strictly implement the decisions of the UN Security Council. Failure to comply with the UN Security Council's decisions entails the imposition of sanctions or even exclusion from membership of the UN. In some cases, the Security Council can authorize the use of force to maintain or restore international peace and security. The Security Council makes recommendations to the General Assembly regarding the appointment of the new Secretary General of the UN and the admission of new members to the UN. The Security Council in conjunction with the UN General Assembly elects the judges of the International Court. |
Ukraine's Victory and Russia's Defeat
In recent months, the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine and in particular the Mission (Permanent Mission of Ukraine) of our country in the United Nations have made great efforts to provide support to Ukraine during the voting. Meetings with many leaders and representatives of dozens of countries, especially Eastern European ones, the President of Ukraine P. Poroshenko tried to enlist their support in the election of Ukraine for the UN Security Council. Of great importance for Ukraine's support by the overwhelming majority of the international community was the US President B. Obama's speech of September 28 from the rostrum of the UN General Assembly, in which he clearly condemned Russia's annexation of the Crimea and its aggression in the East of Ukraine.
As accurately pointed out the Ukrainian political scientist Pavlo Nuss, “...voting of the UN members for granting Ukraine the status of a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council can be regarded as an “all-world referendum” or global opinion poll of the world, in the bulletin of which there were only two hypothetical questions: 1. Do you support the aggression of the Russian Federation in the East of Ukraine and V. Putin's aggressive and destructive foreign policy? 2. Do you support creation of a global pro-Ukrainian coalition as opposed to the Russian aggression? And the world's answer was obvious”.
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The election of Ukraine for the UN Security Council shows the support of our country by the international community
The election of Ukraine for the UN Security Council shows the support of our country by the international community despite Moscow's objections, which since February 2014 has been trying to impose on the world its assessment of the processes taking place in Ukraine, referring to the Ukrainian leadership as “Bandera junta that has usurped power in Kyiv having expelled the legitimate President”. So, the election of Ukraine for the UN Security Council is another crushing defeat of the Kremlin's anti-Ukrainian policy, and suggests that in the Russian-Ukrainian confrontation the vast majority of countries supports Ukraine as a victim of the Russian aggression. For the first time such a support Ukraine received March 27, 2014, when the UN General Assembly by votes of 100 delegations supported the resolution entitled “The Territorial Integrity of Ukraine”, condemning the Russian annexation of the Crimea.
In his address to the nation on the occasion of Ukraine's having been elected a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, P. Poroshenko said that the voting on the 15th of October at the UN General Assembly demonstrated the global level of international support for Ukraine: “This result is a convincing evidence of the deep international solidarity with Ukraine in conditions of the continuing aggression by a foreign permanent member of the UN Security Council — Russia. We succeeded thanks to the courage and heroism of the Ukrainian people in the struggle for freedom and independence. Each of the 177 votes given today at the UN General Assembly in New York for Ukraine — is the voice in support of the national sovereignty, political independence and unity of Ukraine.”
Ukraine Is Being Congratulated
In mid-October, during the Minister of Foreign Affairs P. Klimkin's visit to Washington, he held a number of meetings in the White House and the US State Department. In particular, he met with Assistant to the US President for National Security Affairs, Susan Rice, Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken, Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland, Coordinator for International Energy Affairs at the US Department of State Amos Hochstein, the US Permanent Representative to the UN Security Council Samantha Power and other senior officials. All of these US officials congratulated Ukraine on its having been elected a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.
One of the first to congratulate Ukraine on a temporary membership in the UN Security Council was the US Ambassador to the UN Security Council Samantha Power. According to her, “...a very strong result of the voting shows that the international community has expressed its support for Ukraine”. Ukraine has been congratulated by all foreign embassies accredited in Kyiv. The heads of foreign states, governments and parliaments have also sent their official congratulations to the Ukrainian leadership.
Russia's position
In the Russian Foreign Ministry's statement of October 15, about the election of non-permanent members of the UN Security Council, expressed the hope that “...the elected states will actively contribute to the consolidation of the Organization's central role in international affairs, improving its efficiency and authority in the implementation of the agenda, advocate for political and diplomatic settlement of crisis situations in strict compliance with the goals and principles of the UN Charter and international law”. The statement also pointed out that the Russian side was ready for constructive cooperation with the newly elected members of the UN Security Council.
Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN V. Churkin called the voting on the election of Ukraine for the Security Council “non-alternative”. According to him, “in the circumstances of the voting without an alternative the result was as expected”. V. Churkin argued against P. Poroshenko's statement that Russia had been trying to prevent the election of Ukraine a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.
Trying to play down the importance of Ukraine's success in its election to the UN Security Council, Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia G. Gatilov stated that Ukraine had been approved as a non-alternative candidate from one of the five regional groups at the United Nations — the Eastern European one — even before the election in the General Assembly. Therefore, in his opinion, “...Kyiv should not present a completely predictable outcome of the elections as yet another triumph in the international arena”. But the fact that Ukraine was the only candidate for non-permanent members of the UN Security Council from the Eastern Europe was not accidental, but it was the result of concerted efforts of the leadership of our country and in particular of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, as well as of the goodwill of Eastern European States.
Mr. Gatilov wished “...our Ukrainian partners to use their stay in the Security Council not to politicize the debate on the Ukrainian conflict, but to seek constructive ways to resolve it”. He also expressed hope that “the Ukrainians listen to this (to his words) attentively and act accordingly in the Security Council”. I would like to tell Mr. Gatilov and his colleagues that there will be no obedient and submissive to Moscow Ukrainians any more. You will not live to see them! In the UN Security Council, Ukraine will open a diplomatic front against Russia.
What does the status of a member of the UN Security Council give to Ukraine?
The status of a member of the UN Security Council allows Ukraine to initiate a meeting of the Security Council, to take part in shaping the agenda of the Security Council, to submit draft resolutions. Ukraine's Representative in the UN Security Council will be able to participate in closed-door talks, which produce draft resolutions, decisions, and statements of the UN Security Council. Like all other members of the Security Council, in 2016-2017, for one or two months, Ukraine will head the UN Security Council. During the presidency of the Security Council, the Representative of Ukraine may make “the Head's statements” which are usually taken in the absence of objections from other members of the Security Council.
Not all UN Security Council's resolutions can be blocked by veto from the five permanent member countries of the Security Council. The overwhelming majority of UN Security Council's resolutions require a qualified majority for adoption, that is, nine out of fifteen members of the Security Council. Therefore, if a non-permanent members are able to negotiate and coordinate their positions on a particular item on the agenda, they will be able to prevent adoption of resolutions unacceptable to them, and to promote those resolutions that meet their common interests. So, if a non-permanent members of the UN Security Council act in solidarity, they will be able to achieve their common goal. At this, the texts of the UN Security Council's resolutions should be drafted in such a way as not to give any reason to any country — permanent member of the Security Council to veto them.
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Ukraine's membership in the UN Security Council will also provide more opportunities to inform the world about the situation in our country and its policies in the international arena. Our diplomats will have an additional opportunity to remind the international community about the need to take all possible measures to stop the Russian aggression and to return the occupied territories.
According to the political analyst of the Institute of Euro-Atlantic Cooperation V. Horbach, “...Ukraine's membership in the UN Security Council, where important decisions on security (including those relating to Ukraine) are made, allows us to better protect ourselves from various Russian insinuations”. V. Horbach believes that Ukraine's two-year cadence “...should be used for an attack on the Russian position where it is untruthful and false”. And Russia's position is untruthful and false very often, especially in regard to Ukraine.
Ukraine's Task in the UN Security Council
First of all, during its membership in the UN Security Council, Ukraine should use all the United Nations' capabilities to settle the military conflict in the East of Ukraine. Ukraine must submit to the UN General Assembly a resolution, which will clearly identify Russia as the aggressor, and find a way to provide Ukraine with peacekeeping assistance. President P. Poroshenko has said that Ukraine's membership in the UN Security Council will help restore peace in our country and liberate the Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia. However, according to the former Foreign Minister V. Ohryzko, to seek adoption of the UN Security Council's resolution on the territorial integrity of Ukraine and the conflict with Russia will be extremely difficult, as the Russian representative in the Security Council can always block any decision in the interests of Ukraine. During the entire existence of the UN, veto power has been often enjoyed by the USSR and its “successor” Russia: a total of 120 times. The USA vetoed the decision of the Security Council 76 times, Britain — 32, France — 18 and China — 5 times.
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Therefore, under the existing system of veto in the UN Security Council, Ukraine can only rely on discussions on matters in which it is interested. Despite this, Ukraine, according to President P. Poroshenko, should pay considerable attention to the reform of the Security Council, and counteracting Russia's overuse of the veto power. To make changes to the UN Charter and to cancel the veto, a special resolution should be adopted which would be supported by two thirds of the members of the UN General Assembly, as well as the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. But surely not only Russia but also other countries of the “Big Five” will not want to deprive themselves of the right of veto. Obviously we can talk only about the restriction of the right of veto for the country-permanent member of the UN Security Council, which like today's Russia, has resorted to acts of aggression against other countries. France and Mexico also propose to make such restrictions. At present, about 100 the UN member countries support these proposals and their number is growing steadily.
In 2016, a non-permanent UN Security Council members for the eleventh time will also be Japan, which is one of the biggest financial backers of the UN. Japan has a totally pro-Ukrainian position and is our natural ally. As we know, this country has a long-term territorial dispute with Russia over the South Kuril Islands, which is why a Peace Treaty between Moscow and Tokyo after the Second World War is still unsigned. Recently, after Moscow announced its plans to establish a new military base in the Kuril Islands, the problem of the Kuril Islands has flared up again. Japanese government intends to express an official protest after learning details of Russian plans to establish military bases on the Kurile Islands. Thus, Ukraine and Japan have a common territorial problem with Russia, so they have a reason to coordinate their respective actions in the UN Security Council.
Japan, which consistently ranks third in the world in terms of GDP (in 2014 — $4.7 trillion) after the USA and China, has a full right to become a permanent member of the UN Security Council, but this is impossible without reforming the UN. Despite this, Japan could support Ukraine in the issue of reforming the World Organization. Apart from Japan, a permanent seat in the UN Security Council is also claimed by Brazil, India, Germany and South Africa.
Apart from its national interests, Ukraine should defend in the Security Council the interests of the Eastern European regional group, which delegated our country to the UN Security Council. Therefore, Ukraine needs to constantly consult with the Eastern partners and negotiate with them on its possible actions and initiatives in the UN Security Council. It is known that Russia at all costs tried to find an alternative to Ukraine's membership in the Security Council from among the Eastern European countries, but failed to. None of the countries in Eastern Europe wished to compete with Ukraine and this way they manifested support to Ukraine in a very difficult time for it. For this we have to thank our Eastern European friends and partners and of course to help them solve their problems in the UN Security Council.
While in the UN Security Council, Ukraine is obliged to firmly raise the question of human rights violations in the Crimea, in particular the rights of the indigenous Crimean Tatar people. It should also raise the issue and that the Crimea is an occupied by Russia territory of a non-nuclear state that is a party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, and now the Crimea is getting nuclear weapons and their carriers, and this is a great concern for the countries of the Black Sea basin. And not only for these countries. Working in the UN Security Council, Ukraine will be obliged to deal not only with its own problems (the annexed Crimea and the occupied Donbas), but with other military conflicts and humanitarian disasters far beyond Ukraine. Trying to solve the issue in the Security Council to send a peacekeeping contingent to the Donbas, Ukraine also needs to participate in peacekeeping operations around the world, especially because almost in all the years of independence, Ukraine has been actively involved in peacekeeping operations. Today, about 400 Ukrainian servicemen and employees of law-enforcement bodies are serving in six (6) United Nations peacekeeping operations, particularly in Georgia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kosovo, Liberia, Sudan and Timor-Leste. One third of helicopters, used by the United Nations in its peacekeeping missions, has been provided by Ukraine.
Who will be the next UN Secretary-General?
In 2016, a new Secretary-General of the United Nations has to be elected. The Security Council should endorse a candidate before the nomination is submitted for consideration by the General Assembly. Over the 70 years of the existence of the UN, none of the eight UN Secretary-General represented the states of Eastern Europe. Besides, they all were males. On the sidelines of the United Nations, it is increasingly said that the next UN Secretary-General should be a woman. The current UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has also repeatedly said that the next head of the UN should be a woman.
As of today, the list of possible candidates includes: the current Administrator of the UN Development Program and the former Prime Minister of New Zealand Helen Clark; the Executive Director of UNESCO Bulgarian Irina Bokova; Chilean President Michelle Bachelet; President of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaite and Prime Minister of Denmark Helle-Thorning-Schmidt. According to leading Ukrainian diplomats, a sincere friend of Ukraine, Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite has quite good chances to be elected to the post of the UN Secretary General. If this happens, Ukraine in the second year of stay in the UN Security Council will receive substantial support from the new Secretary General. But the Ukrainian delegation to the UN Security Council will have to do everything in its power and potential to make it happen that way. There is no doubt that Moscow is also using its powerful resource to prevent the election of D. Grybauskaite to the post of UN Secretary General. In his speech at the meeting of the UN Security Council on 20 October on the UN SC's methods of work, the RF's Representative to the UN V. Churkin called not to “build up the excitement for the choosing and appointment of a new Secretary-General of the United Nations”. According to him, “...the term of office of the current Head of the Secretariat expires in more than a year, but a number of delegations demand to start the election process right now. We believe that in this there is no practical use, other than “setting points” for those who promote these initiatives”.
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As you know, there is a saying: “...a diplomat in his own words conceals his thoughts”, and sometimes behind his words, he hides even some “affairs” of the state, which he represents. There is no doubt that Moscow has long ago begun its “hidden struggle” for the right for it candidacy of the next UN Secretary General, on whose political position today may depend a lot in the United Nations. Thus, the struggle for the candidature of the next Secretary General of the United Nations may be one of the directions of the “main strike” at the “the diplomatic front” between the pro-Ukrainian and pro-Russian coalitions in the United Nations.
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If you look at the website of the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the United Nations, you can see that today there are 14 diplomats, apart from probably still the same number of technical staff people. According to experts of the “Borysfen Intel” and many Ukrainian diplomats, the Mission of Ukraine to the United Nations should be strengthened with experienced diplomatic personnel and provided with the necessary financial resources. I think that the Embassy of Ukraine will also strengthen its support of the activity of the Representation of Ukraine to the United Nations. Besides, in my opinion, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has to submit to the leadership of the state, including to the Verkhovna Rada, a draft Strategy of activities of the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the UN Security Council. It should be regularly and fully publicized on the website of the Mission and in the appropriate media, in particular in the Journal of the MFA of Ukraine “Zovnishni Spravy” (“External Affairs”). Of course, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry should regularly issue press releases about the activities of the Ukraine's Mission in the UN Security Council.
The election of Ukraine into the UN Security Council is a very important diplomatic event for our country, but this is only the first step. Ahead, there is a lot of hard and complicated work for Ukrainian diplomats to do at the United Nations and in the United States. And only at the end of 2017 it will be possible to assess the results of this work. Therefore, it would be wise after the first year of work of Ukraine's Mission to the UN Security Council to hear in the Verkhovna Rada a report of Ukraine's Foreign Ministry on the results of this activity.
I think that caring Ukrainians will carefully watch the work of Representatives of Ukraine to the UN Security Council. Let us hope that their activities will be most effective for strengthening the international authority of our state, to protect its political independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity. But the efficiency of the Ukrainian diplomats at the United Nations will depend on the effectiveness and positive political and socio-economic processes in Ukraine, on the cohesion of the Ukrainian people, who in the confrontation with the imperial Russia must defend its inalienable right to freely choose its leadership and determine its own future.
