UN Security Council

IN NEWS:

• The elections for five non-permanent members will be held by the UN General Assembly on 17 June, in which India is likely to be elected for the eighth time.

ABOUT UNSC:

• The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN)
• The Security Council consists of fifteen members, of which five are permanent: China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

POWER OF UNSC:

• The United Nations Charter gives the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) the power to take collective action to maintain international peace and security.
• UNSC is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, and approving any changes to the UN Charter.
• The decisions about the establishment, maintenance or expansion of peacekeeping operations are taken by the Security Council.

NON-PERMANENT MEMBERS:

• Along with the five permanent members, the Security Council of the United Nations has ten temporary members that hold their seats on a rotating basis by geographic region. Non-permanent members may be involved in global security briefings.
• These ten non-permanent members are elected by the United Nations General Assembly for two-year terms starting on 1 January, with five replaced each year.
• To be approved, a candidate must receive at least two-thirds of all votes cast for that seat, which can result in deadlock if there are two roughly evenly matched candidates.

PRELIMS QUESTION:

Q. Consider the following statements regarding UN Security council:

1. Non-permanent members of UNSC are elected for five year terms.
2. It is responsible for overseeing various missions of UN Peace keeping force.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer to Prelims question