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Russia Takes UN Security Council Presidency on Saturday

Russia Takes UN Security Council Presidency on Saturday
folder_openRussia access_time11 months ago
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By Staff, Agencies

Russia takes up the presidency of the United Nations Security Council [UNSC] on Saturday, April 1 a role that is rotated monthly among the council's 15 members that it will hold for one month. Moscow most recently held the position in February 2022.

As Russia's UNSC presidency draws closer, the White House lamented that there is "no feasible international legal pathway" to change that reality, while Ukraine blatantly branded Russia's presidency of the UN Security Council as a "bad joke."

The 15-nation Security Council is the UN's most powerful organ. It can authorize military action, deploy peacekeepers, sanction nations and individuals, and refer possible war crimes cases to the International Criminal Court.

Council members take turns as president according to alphabetical order [by English spellings]. The last time Russia came up in the rotation was February 2022.

The only time in recent history when a country missed its presidency was in 1994 in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide, according to Security Council Report, a think tank that studies the council's transparency and effectiveness. At the time, Rwanda was a non-permanent council member.

Rwanda's council seat was vacant for six weeks from mid-July, when Pasteur Bizimungu became Rwanda's president, until September, when Rwanda should have been council president.

"But clearly the new government had just taken up the seat; they didn't have time to prepare. They just had experienced the genocide and they had a new government," Security Council Report told VOA. "So, they skipped Rwanda, and the seat went to Spain, which was next in alphabetical order."

The council decided that Rwanda would get its chance, once the alphabetical rotation had been completed, and it did sit as president in December 1994.

As for Russia's presidency, no one can prevent it.

From the White House podium on Thursday, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that a country that "flagrantly violates the UN Charter" has no place on the council, but there is "no feasible international legal pathway" around that.

"As unpalatable as it may be to see Russia presiding over the council, the reality is this is a largely ceremonial position which rotates to council members month by month in alphabetical order," she said, adding that the US encourages Russia to conduct itself professionally so the council can carry out its work.

"Russia is a permanent member," said one council diplomat. "While they are misbehaving gravely on Ukraine and just tearing the [UN] Charter apart, my expectation is they will do this presidency in a professional manner."

Ukraine is outraged that Russia is on the council, much less chairing it. Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Moscow's presidency is a "bad joke."

Among Russia's planned meetings in April will be a ministerial-level debate chaired by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the defense of the UN Charter.

Moscow also plans to hold an informal council meeting early in the month on the issue of Ukrainian children allegedly abducted and forcibly deported to Russia, which Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said was planned before the ICC issued its warrant for Putin. The envoy has described the issue of the children as "totally overblown."

And on April 10, Russia has scheduled a meeting on Western arms transfers to Ukraine. Western nations say they are sending equipment, weapons and ammunition to Ukraine as it is fighting in "self-defense".

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