Failure to act in Syria shows UN’s problems

February 9, 2012
Viktoria Dahlrot

This past weekend the United Nations Security Council failed to pass a resolution that would condemn the Syrian government’s actions in the past 11 months. According to the UN more than 5000 have been killed and the violence is increasing between the government and the opposition forces. With this, you would think that the UN would have to intervene. The Security Council session ended on a very disappointing note however, when both Russia and China exercised their veto power, thus blocking the resolution.

Russia and China did so because they felt the ‘responsibility to protect’ had gone too far. However, the resolution in question is more symbolic and would have backed an Arab League peace plan for Syria; it did not advocate military intervention and only called for a voluntary arms embargo. Furthermore it condemned Bashar al-Assad’s governments’ actions.

The resolution was supported by all other Security Council members and would have, especially if Russia had supported it, shown the Syrian government that its actions are not acceptable. The United States’ UN ambassador Susan E. Rice said she was disgusted by Russia and China’s vetoes, and the German ambassador said “it’s a scandal not to act”.

The fact that the UN has once again failed to act highlights one of the main issues with the UN, and further illustrates the desperate need for reform of the Security Council. However no plan mentions a removal of the veto. It is ridiculous that two countries should be able to wield so much power as to stop a resolution passing when there is a consensus among the other Security Council members, thus hindering the UN to take action.

Once again the UN is standing by, paralysed and constrained by its own framework. Even the ‘responsibility to protect’ doctrine (which the Security Council, and thus Russia and China, supports) is not being implemented because of the veto. Alain Juppé, the French foreign minister called the massacres in Homs crimes against humanity, which falls under the responsibility to protect.

Even Ban Ki-moon said the vote was disappointing and thinks the UN needs to unite. With this it is unrealistic of Russia to think that the UN will not take action. The question is only how much worse the situation will have to get before the international community intervenes. A commander for the Free Syrian Army said “this regime won’t end accept through force”, further suggesting that more violence is to be expected. Since Friday more than 200 have been killed in attacks on Homs.

As the situation worsens, and especially if it progresses to a civil war, the UN and the US will have to face the fact that military intervention becomes a more and more likely solution. It is scandalous that, despite all its efforts, the UN remains on the side lines of the Syria conflict because of the views of two countries.

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