The United Nations and Global Security

Abstract

The United Nations was formed in 1945 with the major purpose of promoting and ensuring international peace and security. Since then it has formed the major forum for the negotiation and management of major treaty regimes, become central to international law relevant to security, promoted normative and analytical innovation in international security, and – with bodies like the Security Council, the Department of Peacekeeping, the High Commissioner for Refugees, and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs – taken on a direct operational and coordinating role in the governance of international security. This chapter critically surveys the evolving architecture of the UN system as it pertains to security, with a particular focus on the changing role and focus of the Security Council since the end of the Cold War, drawing on issue-mapping research by the authors.

The chapter then considers a range of failures – from well-understood crises such as Sudan, Libya, and Syria, to less-commented problems such as its minimal role in the prevention and resolution of intrastate conflict, the prevention of war crimes, or managing strategic instability between states. While commenting on key positions in debates about Security Council reform, the chapter argues for more profound reform of the way in which the Security Council understands its role and purpose, connects with the General Assembly and global civil-society, and integrates with a more holistic and systemic approach to global security governance that genuinely serves humanity on an increasingly fragile earth.