Veto now major obstacle

The Key Government must press on with its diplomatic efforts to curb the use of the Security Council veto and reform the United Nations, writes Robert G. Patman.

The emerging global order in the 21st century is likely to prove more demanding for countries such as New Zealand than was previously the case.

In the last three and a-half decades, globalisation has been radically reshaping the international landscape.

Globalisation can be understood as the intensification of technologically driven links between societies, institutions, cultures, and individuals on a worldwide basis.

The old assumption we live in a compartmentalised world where sovereign states hold exclusive sway has been largely shown to be outmoded.

In the era of globalisation, New Zealand - a sparsely populated and geographically isolated society - has experienced profound changes in terms of national identity and its role in the world.

These changes include a non-nuclear and regionally focused security policy, sweeping deregulation of the economy, recognition of the special constitutional and cultural position of Maori people, new trade and diplomatic links with Asia-Pacific and closer ties with the superpowers, China and the United States.

At the same time, New Zealand has experienced a sharp rise in income inequality, increased costs in the provision of housing and education, mounting concerns about environmental decline, and growing fears the country's sovereignty is being eroded by New Zealand's participation in multilateral trade deals and multinational intelligence-sharing arrangements.

The challenge of making sure the positive aspects of globalisation prevail over its downsides is a massive one for New Zealand and other countries in the 21st century.

With or without its current seat on the UN Security Council, New Zealand and other smaller states must be prepared to shoulder a more active international role as globalisation continues to deepen.

While the number of national problems requiring international solutions is growing, many sovereign states, particularly the most powerful ones, remain in denial about this.

This paradox is highlighted by the veto rights of the five permanent (P-5) members of the UN Security Council.

The continuing international failure to squarely address climate change - a basic threat to our planet - and burgeoning conflicts in places like Syria, Iraq and the Ukraine all point to the paralysis of the UN Security Council through the use or threatened use of the veto by P-5 members.

The irony is that the likes of Russia, US and China have sometimes exercised the veto ostensibly to protect their sovereign interests in situations over which they have little or no control.

So the Key Government must press on with its diplomatic efforts in New York to curb the use of the veto and reform the UN to make it a more a more responsive and effective institution for managing an interdependent world.

But surely New Zealand is too small to make a difference here? And is it realistic to expect the P-5 states to accept new limitations on their veto privileges?

It does seem a tall order. But New Zealand was elected to the Security Council by 145 members of the UN General Assembly last year because, among other things, it promised to do something about restraining the use of the veto.

It should not be forgotten that the great powers, however they are defined, constitute a very small minority of the 193 member states in the UN.

If the P-5 countries continue to drag their feet on this issue, the New Zealand Government and its allies in the General Assembly should seriously entertain the idea of challenging them to publicly justify their retention of the veto to the rest of the UN membership.

At present, the veto mechanism remains a major obstacle to responding to pressing international problems like climate change and civil wars, such as that in Syria, that do not respect territorial boundaries in terms of impact and increasingly threaten many countries, including New Zealand.

Robert G. Patman is professor of international relations in the department of politics, University of Otago.

 

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