• Submitted by: admin
• International
• Politics and Government
• 05 / 01 / 2009

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The majority of the member countries of United Nations favor a deep and swift reform of its Security Council. However, very little progress has been made in this sense due to opposition from such countries as the United States who see their right to veto threatened. That Veto is considered an anti-democratic, discriminatory, and archaic practice.

Since it was set up, 60 years ago, the Security Council has been comprised of 15 members, out of which 5 have the right to veto: the United States, Great Britain, France, Russia, and China. That veto right has been mostly used to protect American interests and those of its traditional allies.

In many occasions, Cuba, a founding member of United Nations has said that any reform of the Security Council should be aimed at making it more democratic, representative, transparent and efficient. That it should defend the interests of all countries, especially those of developing ones, with objectivity, and rationality, instead of the now-prevailing arbitrary and discriminatory methods.

In this regard, Cuba has always maintained a clear position. The decision making process at the Security Council must be democratized, limiting the use of the right to veto until it is eventually eliminated.

At a recently held session of the General Assembly in New York, Cuban Ambassador Abelardo Moreno suggested that the Security Council should hold more open meetings and fewer closed doors discussions.

Cuba will not be satisfied with a change of methods until a thorough reform is implemented. He said that more countries should be granted permanent member status to have a better geographical representation: 2 African countries, 2 developing Asian countries, and 2 from Latin America and the Caribbean.

Moreover, the Security Council should submit more analytical reports to the General Assembly, which is a more democratic forum, where every country has the right to vote, but no one has the right to veto.

Fuente: Periodico26