Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called for the United Nations to abolish veto power at the Security Council, arguing that a series of global crises has exposed the limitations of the current system.
Erdogan said the COVID-19 pandemic, the energy crisis, supply-chain disruptions and regional conflicts have demonstrated that leaving the resolution of global crises in the hands of a small number of capitals no longer reflects today’s realities.
“The mechanisms of global decision-making must be adapted to modern circumstances,” Erdogan said in an opinion article for Bloomberg. He argued that the UN Security Council still reflects the structure of the post-World War II era and called for a more effective, fair and accountable system of representation.
According to Erdogan, efforts to address global and regional challenges should take into account the experience, capacity and interests of different regions.
He also reiterated his call that “the world is bigger than five,” referring to the five permanent members of the Security Council — the United States, Russia, China, France and the United Kingdom.
Erdogan argued that simply adding new privileged members to the Security Council would not resolve the concentration of decision-making power in the hands of a small number of countries.
“Abolishing the veto privilege should be both the starting point and the fundamental strategic objective of any meaningful reform,” he said.
He called for a broad coalition within the UN General Assembly based on the principle that no single country should have the power to permanently block the will of the majority of the international community.
Erdogan also said there is a need to establish a stronger balance between the UN Security Council and the General Assembly.
