Debates about the UN Flashcards
the UN is not obsolete and unnecessary: CAN BE REFORMED
Despite its imperfections it is absurd to suggest to the UN is totally unreformable
The operational and strategic approach to peacekeeping and the provision of humanitarian aid have both improved significantly in recent years and further reforms could undoubtably be introduced
For example UN agencies could be better coordinated for you and could confer legitimacy on international action rather than always implementing actually self and relationships between regional organisations could be strengthened
the UN has been effective in maintaining international peace and security: UNSC SUCCESSES
the UNSC has been extremely active, approving peacekeeping operations, military intervention and sanctions across the world, many of which have been highly successful and effective
since its establishment, there has not been a World War Three and inter-state war has decreased considerably
it has worked hard to successfully secure peace in many different conflicts
in 1990, it was successful in peace-making when it mandated military action to evict Iragi forces from Kuwait and then authorised the establishment of UN safe havens within Iraq in 1991 to limit Saddam Hussein’s aggression towards his own citizens
another UNSC success can be seen in Sierra Leone (1999 - 2005)
when UN peacekeepers successfully prevented the country relapsing into conflict while a peace agreement was put in place.
UN soldiers helped to destroy thousands of weapons and disarm thousands of fighters, including child soldiers. Sierra Leone now provides peacekeeping troops of its own in Somalia
both of these cases illustrate that when the UNSC works together, it’s collective decisions and resolutions can be highly effective.
Therefore, the UN as a whole can be said to be effective in maintaining international peace and security
the UN has been effective in maintaining international peace and security: VETO POWER
veto use has become significantly less frequent which allows the
UNSC to effectively maintain peace and security
since the early 1990s, veto use by the P5 has decreased has significantly. During the Cold War (1947 - 91), the rivalry between the USA and USSR saw 193 vetoes used. In contrast, only 12 vetoes were used in the UNSC between 1990 and 2003
this has allowed the UNSC to achieve a lot more in recent decades and since 1948, it has authorised around 69 peacekeeping missions globally
even when a gridlock does occur, this does not necessarily prevent the UNSC taking action. For example, it can subcontract military action as it did to US led forces during the Korean War and to regional bodies such as the African Union in Darfur - demonstrating that the UN is not always unable to act, it merely has to operate within the constraints of what its most powerful members perceive as their national interest
this makes the UNSC a more effective body in passing resolutions and taking collective action, suggesting that while the existence of veto power does pose some problems, the UNSC and the UN as a whole is still able to maintain peace and security
the UN has been effective in maintaining international peace and security: UNGA
the UN General Assembly can be effective in maintaining international peace and security, especially when the UNSC is unable to act
in 1950, the United States initiated the landmark “Uniting for Peace” resolution. It states that if the UN Security Council “fails to exercise its primary responsibility” for maintaining international peace and security, the General Assembly should take up the matter itself and urge collective action
the assembly has acted on this resolution in a handful of instances, including the Suez Crisis of 1956.
in the UNSC, the UK and France used their vetoes for the first time to block a US resolution condemning the Israeli, so the UNGA took action and intervention by the UN in the crisis ultimately resulted in a cease-fire, troop withdrawal, and the establishment of the first
UN Emergency Force, a peacekeeping force
the UN has not been effective in maintaining international peace and security: UNSC FAILURES
the UNSC has failed to maintain international peace and security on
many occasions
even when agreed, resolutions may not be implemented effectively which results in the UNSC failing to maintain peace and security
the UNSC resolution to disarm Syria of its chemical weapons was largely ineffective and did not prevent future conflict. Syrian government forces were still using gas bombs against rebel forces and in 2017, a suspected government forces chemical attack took place in a Syrian town, killing at least 74 people and injuring around
550
peacekeeping missions have often been under resourced, leading such missions to be ineffective
this was the case during the Bosnian Civil War (1991-95) when peacekeepers, who did not have sufficient resources to defend themselves, failed to prevent Serb forces from executing 8000
Bosnian Muslims in Srebrenica when Serbian forces invaded a UN declared safe zone
in 1992, UN peacekeepers in Somalia were unable to defend themselves against a rebel attack and were forced to retreat. US troops attempted to rescue the situation by fighting back against the militias but this has disastrous results
these tragic failures suggest that the UN as a whole may not be effective in maintaining international peace and security
the UN has not been effective in maintaining international peace and security: VETO POWER
the existence of the veto power poses major problems that essentially neuters the UNSC and means it often fails to maintain peace and security - the UN is severely limited by what its member states agree and disagree on
the veto has become the mechanism through which the rivalries of major powers are played out, making it difficult for the UNSC to take action to deal threats of aggression or threats to peace
during the Cold War, the rivalry between the USA and USSR saw 193 vetoes used
in recent times, the veto has also led to the problem of gridlock which involves the P5 using their veto powers to protect their national interests, meaning that the UNSC is often unable to act
the 1994 Rwandan genocide was not prevented precisely for these reasons, the P5 put their own strategic interests first and failed to agree on military intervention. UN peacekeepers were powerless to stop the genocide as the Council had not agreed on appropriate action to be taken and had not given the peacekeepers permission to intervene with force against the tribal fighters. As a result, up to 1 million civilians lost their lives in iust over 100 davs
this is also why there has been no effective UN intervention in Syria since the beginning of its civil war in 2011. There was a complete lack of consensus over Syria - the USA, France and the UK all aligned themselves with the Syrian rebels, while Russia and China consistently backed the Syrian government. Yet again, the UNSC was unable to act due to Russia and China vetoing any action, which illustrates the fact that the UN has not and cannot adequately maintain international peace and security unless the P5 agrees
Russia has used their veto power more than any other P5 member, including vetoing resolutions that would have allowed chemical weapons investigations in Syria, imposed sanctions, and referred
Syria to the International Criminal Court
the UN has not been effective in maintaining international peace and security: OTHER ORGANISATIONS HAVE BEEN MORE EFFECTIVE
this can be seen during the Cold War (1945-91)
a military standoff between the USA and USSR dominated the early decades of the UN
the UN was powerless to influence the conflict given that two permanent members of the UNSC were effectively at war with eachother
more influential during this period was NATO, which created a specific security alliance for the USA and its Western European allies, like-minded states that felt a shared threat
there was a military stalemate between NATO and the Warsaw Pact countries, which secured stability and prevented Soviet aggression because an attack on a NATO member state was considered an attack on them all. The Soviet Union would essentially be waging war on all members of NATO, which it was unwilling to do as the two blocs of power were evenly matched in terms of military and nuclear power, so war between them would lead to mutually assured destruction
the NPT was also influential during this period in preventing a major spread of nuclear weapons beyond the Soviet Union and the
USA
NATO also took a more effective role in Bosnian and the crisis was only resolved after NATO bombed the Bosnian Serbs, which led to the Dayton Peace Accords
the UN has not been effective in maintaining international peace and security: CANNOT PREVENT STATES ACTING UNILATERALLY
the UN was largely side-lined during the War on Terror (2001-09)
the US government, under George W Bush, was determined to protect its national interests after the 9/11 attacks. It pushed for military action in Iraq but France and Russia indicated they would not support the invasion
but the US proceeded with military intervention in Iraq in 2003 without a UNSC Resolution
arguably, this intervention led to the rise of ISIS. As David Kilcullen, a counter-insurgency expert, said “we have to recognize that a lot of the problem is of our own making…. There would be no ISIS if we hadn’t invaded Iraq”
Russia decided to intervene in Syria unilaterally, without UN consent, with controversial military action in support of the Assad regime
this illustrates that the UN is often powerless to prevent unilateral action by member states which often leads to destruction and instability, as seen in Iraq, and suggests that the UN has not been
effective in maintaining peace and stability
the UN has not been effective in maintaining international peace and security: FACES NEW THREATS
the security challenges facing the modern UN are vastly different from those in earlier decades, they include the threat of nuclear terrorism, the problem of state collapse and the disruption caused by the spread of infectious diseases
the changing nature of war and armed conflict raises particular difficulties from the UN in its peacekeeping and peace-building roles. The rise identity wars and the links between civil strife, humanitarian and refugee crises and endemic crime make sustainable peace difficult to achieve
the UNAMID (UN Mission in Darfur) was ineffective because the UN was not mandated to infringe Sudanese sovereignty This case in
Darfur shows how UN intervention to keep the peace and provide humanitarian aid can be blocked by an unwilling host government
a key challenge for the UN in the period since 9/11 has been the emergence of threats from non-state actors, particularly terrorist organisations such as al-Qaeda and ISIS
the UN was established to deal principally with security threats from nation states and has found it significantly harder, if not impossible, to counter threats from non-state actors
furthermore, civil wars have increased, even while inter-state war has decreased. The UN has been less able to respond to internal conflict, as it was designed to deal with inter-state conflict
the UN has been effective in reducing poverty and promoting economic and social development: ECOSOC
o The UN plays a very important role in reducing poverty and encouraging development through the Economic and Social Council
(ECOSOC)
• A major strength of ECOSOC is that it had advanced the principle that development should not be measured simply in economic terms. Instead, ‘human development’ needs to be understood much more broadly
• ECOSOC also coordinates the work of regional development councils and significant development agencies including the World Health Organisation, UNICEF, the UN Development Programme, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund o Agencies and organisations like this have been successful in reducing poverty and promoting development
• For example, the IMF and the World Bank were successful in maintaining the stability of the monetary system from 1945 to the 1970s, with economic growth rates and world trade both increasing, and post-war Western Europe reconstructed
• From the 1980s, they supplied loans with ‘conditionality, to deliver long-term economic success and tackle poverty. Examples of success include Jordan, South Korea and Chile therefore, the UN can be said to be highly effective in reducing poverty and promoting development as one of its main bodies is responsible for coordinating the work of such organisations
the UN has been effective in reducing poverty and promoting economic and social development: UN GOALS
o The UN’s Millennium Development Goals (2000 - 15) and
Sustainable Development Goals (2015 - 30) have also provided important global targets in the reduction of global poverty o They have been a highly effective, coordinated international effort to tackle poverty, with considerable successes o MDGs were powerful because it was the first time that human development objectives had been internationally agreed and a total of 189 member states and 23 international organisations committed to the goals, reflecting a huge international consensus
• The MDGs created the potential for the UN, member states and various NGOs to coordinate their development efforts on MDG priorities
o For the 15 years that these goals were active, many global and national aid budgets were aligned with the MDG priorities. In the first 5 years alone, foreign aid budgets doubled from $6 billion to $12 billion
o By 2015, the UN called the MDGs “the most successful anti-poverty movement in history” and there were definitely some clear successes
o For example, the number of people living on less than $1.25 a day (the definition of extreme poverty) decreased massively from 1.9 billion in 1990 to 836 million in 2015 - over 1 billion people have been lifted out of extreme poverty
• Furthermore, the global number of child deaths under the age of 5 fell from 12.7 million to 6 million while the number of people with access to clean drinking water doubled between 1990 and 2015
• New HIV infections also fell from 3.5 million to 2.1 million, with 13 million people receiving anti-retroviral treatment in 2015
compared with just 0.8 million in 2000
o Previously, there had been no international coordination of this kind, demonstrating how effective and impactful the UN has been in taking steps to reduce poverty
• Moreover, the MDGs have now been followed by the SDGS, showing that the UN has renewed its commitment to reducing poverty and has increased its focus on sustainability
the UN has not been effective in reducing poverty and promoting economic and social development: ECOSOC
• Critics point out that ECOSOC performance is poorly monitored, meaning that the UN is often ineffective in promoting development and reducing poverty
o According to Helen Clark, who headed the UN Development Programme from 2009 to 2017, ECOSOC has very little sense of strategic planning
• The body has also been criticised of being highly fragmented, with different agencies fulfilling the same role and competing for the same resources. This large number of development agencies operating in the same countries also means that their jurisdiction overlaps so much that accountability is blurred and delivery impeded
o Furthermore, the organisations that it is responsible for coordinating, such as the IMF and World Bank, may actually reinforce structural inequalities and perpetuate poverty o For example, the World Bank encourages poor countries to produce cash crops like cocoa and coffee. This leaves developing economies dependent on developed-world markets and vulnerable to the TNCs that control the processing and distribution of such products
• Cash crop production also reduces the amount of land under cultivation to meet domestic food needs, which can lead to a continuing cycle of famine and poverty
• This suggests that the UN is not effective in reducing poverty and promoting development
the UN has not been effective in reducing poverty and promoting economic and social development: UN GOALS
o When looking at specific regions, countries and genders, the success of MDGs was varied
• Sub-Saharan Africa had not met the MDG for extreme poverty reduction, as it is still 12.5% behind the MDG target
• By contrast, economic growth in China distorted the overall global figures, where it had contributed to a reduction in extreme poverty in eastern Asia, from 61% in 1990 to 4% in 2015 - success of MDGs is clearly not consistent and other factors have been responsible for some of the seemingly impressive MD figures
• The UN also found that in 2015, women were still more likely than men to live in poverty and globally, women stilled earned 24% less than men - suggesting that the MDG to “promote gender equality and empower women” has not been adequately met o Therefore, the UN cannot be said to be entirely effective in reducing poverty and promoting economic and social development
the UN’s ability to achieve has been affected by the balance of
power in world politics: UNIPOLARITY
o Unipolarity is a system of power involving a single hegemon. For example, the USA was the global hegemon between 1989 and 2001, following the collapse of the Soviet Union o This balance of power increases the UN’s ability to achieve because less powerful states tend to be disinclined to use their veto power as they desire to avoid conflict with the hegemon
• This means that there is potential for the UN to be very active, especially regarding issues that the single major power favours o During the period of post-Cold War unipolarity, the UN was very active, approving peacekeeping operations, military intervention and sanctions across the world, many of which were highly successful and effective
o For example, in 1990 IT was successful in peace-making when it mandated military action to evict Iraqi forces from Kuwait and then passed Resolution 688 in 1991 which established safe havens in Irag that were militarily guaranteed by no fly zones, which made it impossible for Saddam Hussein to ethnically cleanse the Kurds who had risen in revolt against him at the end of the first Gulf War
• Another UN success within the period of unipolarity can be seen in Sierra Leone (1999 - 2005) when UN peacekeepers successfully prevented the country relapsing into conflict while a peace agreement was put in place. UN soldiers helped to destroy thousands of weapons and disarm thousands of fighters, including child soldiers. Sierra Leone now provides peacekeeping troops of its own in Somalia
• Both of these cases illustrate that unipolarity increases the UN’s ability to secure peace and stability. Therefore, the balance of power can be said to affect the UN’s ability to achieve
the UN’s ability to achieve has been affected by the balance of power in world politics: BIPOLARITY
o Bipolarity involves two major powers opposed to each other
• As seen during the Cold War (1945 - 89), this made it difficult, if not impossible for the UN to act because the two major powers in the UNSC were at war with each other
o In such a situation, the use of the veto becomes so frequent because it acts as a mechanism through which the rivalries of the two major powers are played out, which prevents the UN from being able to act - so much so, many issues are simply dealt with outside the UN system and the UN is essentially paralysed
• During the Cold War, the rivalry between the USA and USSR saw 193 vetoes used
o Many of these vetoes involved the blocking of other countries’ applications to be members of the UN. For example, Russia blocked
Japan, considering it to be too subject to influence from the US, while US blocked Vietnam’s application after 1975
• Both states also blocked resolutions regarding their Cold War activities. The USSR vetoed resolutions on its actions in Hungary following the 1956 revolt, its 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia and its 1989 invasion of Afghanistan. The US similarly blocked a resolution on its 1983 invasion of Grenada and on its activities in support of the Contra rebels in Nicaragua
• Thus demonstrating that the balance of power does affect the UN’s ability to achieve because bipolarity essentially rendered the
UN powerless during the Cold War
