The United Nations General Assembly has adopted a resolution requiring the five permanent members of the Security Council to justify their use of veto power.
The document was adopted by consensus, i.e. without a vote, said the head of the UN General Assembly Abdulla Shahid.
Today, presided over the #GeneralAssembly that took action on Liechtenstein’s #VetoInitiative draft resolution which mandates a meeting of the #GA whenever a #veto is cast in the #SecurityCouncil.
— UN GA President (@UN_PGA) April 26, 2022
The resolution 76/262, cosponsored by 83 Member States, was adopted by consensus. pic.twitter.com/mX7JKgdCXl
"Within 10 working days from the moment the veto was used the President of the General Assembly shall convene a formal meeting to debate on the veto situation, provided that the Assembly does not convene an extraordinary special session on the same subject," the resolution said.
At the meeting of the Assembly, the right to speak "out of turn" will be given to the state which used veto.
Liechtenstein's envoy to the United Nations said work on the initiative began more than two years ago.
"All member states of this organization agree that the UN Security Council has the primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security and have agreed that the Council acts on their behalf. Therefore, the right of veto goes hand in hand with the commitment to work towards objectives and principles of the UN Charter under all circumstances," said Liechtenstein's envoy Christian Wenaweser presenting the draft resolution.
The UN Security Council consists of 15 states, five of which are permanent members and have the veto right. These are russia, China, the United States, Great Britain and France.
About 40 countries at the initiative of Liechtenstein, have united and submitted to the UN a joint resolution on the new rules of the General Assembly so that it can act adequately if a member of the Security Council exercises a veto right. As the envoy of Ukraine to the UN Sergiy Kyslytsya told LB.ua in an interview, this initiative should create specific mechanisms to limit the use of veto in the Security Council by russia.
Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a speech at a meeting of the UN Security Council convened over the atrocities of the russians in Bucha, emphasized that russia has turned its veto right in the UN Security Council into the right of death. If the United Nations cannot eliminate russia as a source of war, it must self eliminate.