A Review of the Academic Debate about United Nations Security Council Reform

Abstract

This article outlines and discusses the research on UNSC reform. The interdisciplinary field of UNSC reform research can be placed into two broad categories and four sub categories, each indicating the degree to which scholars believe in the benefits of either structural or working methods reform. These include topics such as legitimacy and efficiency and the question of (un)equal representation. The role of The Global South will feature heavily in analyses of how best to reform the UNSC, and of which actors or structures mainly prevent a reform from materialising. There has been a significant gap in research focusing on how the factors that feature as instruments of opposition, e.g. the presented benefits and detriments of the different approaches to reform, can potentially be converged to rethink the direction of the research.

UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL REFORM: new approaches to understanding and unlocking the gridlock

“…While a focus on only one year of negotiations can be seen as possessing a low level of generalisability, the literature review (rev.) 2 and the explicit connections to longstanding political themes concerning UNSC reform improve the observations' validity.…”

“…The issue of UNSC reform is as old as the UN itself (rev) 2 and represents, in a sense, a story of the unfulfilled wishes of those that want to see the council reformed. Besides an expansion of the non-permanent membership from six to ten members in 1965, the council as a whole, along with its permanent membership of five, remains unreformed.…”

“…Foundational for understanding the 2015-2016 negotiations are the debate's historical backdrop, the discussions and developments from 1945 until 2015. This dimension is included as a focal point of the first article (rev), 2 which thoroughly presents the debate as it has unfolded within academia. The developments within the academic debate reflect and inspire the debate among states' political leaders/diplomats (hereafter the professional debate) and can provide a solid understanding of the major historical contours of the UNSC reform debate.…”

“…These reform dimensions occupy the core of both the professional and the academic debates about UNSC reform (rev). 2 Structural reform is what many perceive to be the real reform issue, and it is also the most sought-after reform type among UN member states (rev, dis, pro). [2][3][4]19 However, changes in the council's working methods are not merely sideline issues in the reform debate.…”

“…2 Structural reform is what many perceive to be the real reform issue, and it is also the most sought-after reform type among UN member states (rev, dis, pro). [2][3][4]19 However, changes in the council's working methods are not merely sideline issues in the reform debate. Such reforms are seen by some member states and an increasing number of scholars as being feasible and therefore preferable, or feasible and preferable (rev).…”