Direction of Security Council Reform Unclear after Facilitators’ Report

New York, 30 April 2007 – The five General Assembly-appointed facilitators for Security Council reform submitted their combined report of “Notions on the Way Forward” on 19 April. The President of the General Assembly will hold an informal meeting on Thursday, 3 May, at 3 pm, which in essence will assess Member States’ willingness to pursue a “transitional approach” to reform of the Council. 

The facilitators’ report outlined four variations of an intermediary arrangement:

1. Extended-length seats

1. Allocated for full duration of intermediary arrangement (duration to be determined); states might reserve possibility of recalling the member from that seat earlier
2. Allocated for longer than the current two-year term; possibility of re-election
3. Allocated for longer than the current two-year term; no possibility of re-election

2. Two-year seats, with possibility of immediate re-election

The rationale for engaging in such a model is that none of the major positions advanced so far are likely to be realized at this stage, in the assessment of the facilitators, as none of them has enough support to be approved in the General Assembly. However, “an overwhelming majority of Member States” feel that maintaining the current situation is not acceptable. Thus, for many, a temporary compromise seems to be the most reasonable solution.  Any interim model would be bounded by a mandatory review mechanism. (The length of time before the review would be determined in negotiations.) The review could address the success of the interim model, while also dealing with questions that cannot be solved immediately, such as whether new permanent members would gain the veto power, or whether the veto power should be eliminated altogether or be limited in use. By making temporary arrangements for membership enlargement, “none of the stakeholders has to give up its original position,” the report states. 

Member States’ interpretations of and reactions to the report have varied. Some States reportedly were overwhelmed by the many new views and positions captured in the report, which had not been among the common themes raised in previous General Assembly consultations on the topic. 

One member of the Group of Four (G4 – Brazil, Germany, India, and Japan), has expressed willingness to consider a transitional model, if it is beneficial for the work of the Security Council. However, an approach that only adds more two year seats is not seen as being more productive, according to this member state. If the interim solution would help to create a more productive longer-term solution, however, they reportedly might be willing to be flexible. According to media reports, India, also a member of the G4, may “reject” the facilitator’s findings, as they are unsatisfied with the intermediary approach.  Prior to the release of the report, the G4 held a high-level meeting in Brazil at which the members agreed to hold onto their pursuit new permanent seats for themselves and for two African states.  They are thus set to meet again in New York to determine their position, given the recommendations in the report.

One possible scenario is that Member States will agree broadly to a transitional model, with conditions, so that negotiations will go forward in the short-term.  Another scenario is that some African states may gain some flexibility in their position after consulting with their governments.  Currently they are holding onto the African Union position as endorsed in the Ezulwini Consensus of 2005.  However, if African governments are willing to explore alternatives to a solution that guarantees new non-permanent and veto-wielding permanent seats for African states, then the proposal by the G4 may have enough support to move forward, thus creating six new (non-veto-wielding) permanent seats.

Next Steps

It is expected that numerous bi-lateral and informal meetings will take place leading up to Thursday’s General Assembly meeting.  After the meeting, President Al Khalifa will determine whether to initiate negotiations. 

Security Council Working Group on Documentation

The Security Council’s informal working group on “Documentation and Other Procedural Questions”, which addresses aspects of working methods reform, held a closed meeting last Thursday, 24 April. This working group currently is chaired by the delegation of Slovakia.  Last year, while being chaired by the delegation of Japan, the working group produced a “Presidential Note” with several commitments to making the Council’s working methods more transparent and inclusive of the broader membership.  

The purpose of last week’s meeting was to begin to assess the implementation of those commitments to date, as well as other elements of working methods reform that Council members have introduced. 

The working group reportedly will meet again in mid-May to identify ways of implementing the Presidential Note.

Useful Resources

Report of the Facilitators to the President of the General Assembly (19 April 2007)

Translations of report into Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, and Spanish

Note from President of General Assembly introducing Facilitators’ Report (20 April 2007)

Note by the President of the Security Council on Working Methods (19 July 2006)

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