Ravanchi: The powers of the Security Council are not unlimited
According to IRNA, Majid Takht-e Ravanchi, Iran’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations, told the UN General Assembly on Tuesday about the Security Council’s reforms: “Assessing the Security Council’s performance shows that its growing inefficiency leads to a crisis of legitimacy and credibility.” There has been a serious decline in trust and confidence in this institution and its reform has become inevitable.
The top diplomat of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the United Nations added: “The ultimate goal of the Security Council reform process should be to address all its current challenges and inefficiencies and turn it into a truly effective, transparent, accountable and, above all, law-abiding institution.”
Takht-e Ravanchi added: “We support the increase of council members as a measure to eliminate the existing inequality in the presence of representatives of different regions in it, but we do not consider this measure as an independent goal in itself.”
Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations stated: “Although there are currently efforts to focus more on increasing council members and introducing this measure as equivalent to reform and efficiency of the council, but the discussion on increasing council members can not continue at the expense of other issues.” Find.
“Increasing council members, however important, is just one of many goals in the council reform process,” said Takht-e Ravanchi. The importance of improving the work of the Council and making it accountable, and ensuring that all its decisions are taken in accordance with the objectives and principles of the United Nations and international law, is no less important than increasing the membership of the Council.
He stressed: “Security Council reforms should be considered as a comprehensive process and in it, all five main issues should be considered equally and discussed in full and in the form of a related set.” Therefore, selective approaches should be avoided.
Iran’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations said: “Although Iran attaches great importance to ensuring” fair representation “in the Security Council, it does not consider this sufficient to improve the effectiveness of this institution.
He added: “Currently, the West has a strong presence and influence in the Security Council and three Western countries have vetoes. Other geographical areas are in an unequal position, both in terms of the number of members on the council and in terms of other privileges, including vetoes. This means inequality “between regions”.
“Also, many countries within a particular region have never had a chance to become a member of the council, while there are governments in the same region that have each been council members for 10 to 22 years,” Takht-e Ravanchi said. This also means inequality within a region.
Iran’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations continued: “Therefore, existing inequalities” between different regions “and” within regions “must be eliminated because these two are necessary and complementary.
Takht-e Ravanchi added: “This issue is of great importance for 103 countries, 63 of which have never been members of the council in the last 76 years, and 40 of which have only been members once.” This is also necessary to ensure the geopolitical and geographical balance in the Security Council.
“In this regard, we fully support both the elimination of historical injustices against developing countries from different regions, especially Africa, and the guarantee of equal opportunities for governments in a particular region,” he said.
Iran’s permanent representative to the United Nations said the latter issue could be addressed, including by limiting opportunities for countries that have been members of the council for a long time, and instead providing more opportunities for countries in the same region that have never been members of the council. They have been less on the council, to be realized. In this regard, one can even consider a combination of factors such as population, economic power and regional position.
Takht-e Ravanchi stated: “Reforms that only serve the interests of one region or several specific governments of a region are not acceptable and should be made from any proposal that actually deepens the current inequality or reduces the equal opportunity for governments to join the council.” Transparency and accountability can be seriously avoided or in conflict with the inherent principles of equality of sovereignty and equal rights of states.
The senior diplomat of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the United Nations stated: “We also attach great importance to reforming the working methods of the Council and ensuring that this institution acts in full compliance with international law, especially the UN Charter.”
He added that the Security Council should refrain from making extrajudicial decisions, as well as from resorting to repeated and hasty powers under Chapter VII of the Charter, and should use such powers only as a last resort.
Takht-e Ravanchi added: “Using sanctions as an unwise method raises fundamental ethical questions about whether imposing suffering on vulnerable groups is a legitimate means of exerting pressure on the target country.” Has been.
Iran’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations said: “In the past, some Security Council sanctions have been imposed only for the collective punishment of an entire nation and without any positive and real impact on the maintenance of international peace and security.”
He added: “Therefore, sanctions should be applied very rarely, in a really smart and targeted manner, with limited scope and time, and only when all other measures have been used and their inadequacy to maintain international peace and security has been proven in practice.” To be.
“It must also be ensured that the Security Council refrains from examining situations that do not pose a threat to international peace and security or that are inherently within the competence of governments,” he said.
Iran’s permanent representative to the United Nations has said that turning the Security Council into a truly law-abiding and accountable institution is also a matter of priority. Article 24 of the Charter emphasizes that in the performance of its functions, “the Security Council shall act in accordance with the purposes and principles of the United Nations.” This means that the powers of the Council are not unlimited and above the law, and this institution can not act arbitrarily or without regard to international law.
Iran’s ambassador to the UN stated: “According to Article 24 of the UN Charter, member states have delegated the primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security to the Security Council, and therefore this council also has a legal, political and moral responsibility to act properly and responsibly.” .
Takht-e Ravanchi added: “Therefore, council members should make decisions not based on their national interests or the geopolitical or geographical group to which they belong, but on the common interests of all members of the organization.” This council should never be used as a tool to advance the national interests and political goals of a particular country.
Iran’s representative to the United Nations said: “The Security Council acts on behalf of the member states and therefore must be accountable to them.” This is in fact the philosophy of Article 24 (3) of the Charter of the United Nations, according to which the Council is obliged to submit an annual or special report to the General Assembly to which all member states are represented.
He added: “A review of the relationship between Articles 24 and 25 of the Charter also makes it clear that the Security Council must act in a timely and responsible manner in accordance with the law, avoid making extrajudicial decisions and be accountable to member states.”
Takht-e Ravanchi stated that the council should also not consider issues that do not fall within its competence or have been delegated to other members of the United Nations by the charter. In particular, the Council should refrain from encroaching on the functions and powers of the General Assembly.
In the end, Iran’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations said: “While emphasizing that any formal or substantive decision in the council reform process should be made only on the basis of consensus, we declare our readiness for active and constructive participation in this process.”
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