UN General Assembly Should Have the Right To Override a Veto by a Member of the Security Council - Ukrainian President

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called for the United Nations General Assembly to be given the real possibility to override a veto by a member of the Security Council.

He made this statement during a session of the UN Security Council.

"If a war cannot be stopped because all efforts are blocked by the veto of the aggressor or those who support the aggressor, then this issue should be brought before the General Assembly. Provided that two-thirds of the votes reflecting the will of nations from Asia, Africa, Europe, both Americas, and the Pacific region support it, the veto should indeed be overcome, and such a resolution of the General Assembly should be mandatory for all member states to implement," he emphasized.

Zelensky stated that "resolutions of the General Assembly confirm the fact that Russia is the sole source of this war. However, this has not changed anything for Russia within the UN. But such situations have changed everything for the UN. We must acknowledge that the organization is in a deadlock regarding aggressions."

According to him, "the entire world sees that the UN is ineffective. In this seat in the Security Council, which Russia occupies illegally due to behind-the-scenes manipulations after the collapse of the Soviet Union, sit liars whose job is to justify Russia's aggression and genocide."

"All actions of the UN, whether it's the Security Council or the General Assembly, that could have stopped this aggression, are thwarted by the privilege held by such seats - the seats of permanent members. The veto in the hands of the aggressor is what has pushed the UN into a corner," added the President of Ukraine.

"Currently, no matter what nation you are: a nation with hundreds of millions of people, a small nation heroically defending its independence, a country in need of assistance, a nation capable of providing real help, a state relying on its military, or a state for which the UN Charter, not its army, is the first and last line of defense... No matter who you are, the current UN system still makes you inferior to the veto power held by only a few, used by one - Russia - to the detriment of all other UN members," Zelensky emphasized.

"I regret that the UN Security Council is currently nothing more than the most prominent and visible platform in the world. I believe that the UN is capable of more. I am confident that the UN Charter can truly work for global peace and security," President of Ukraine stressed.

However, he noted, "for this, years of discussions and projects for reforming the UN should become a process of reforming the UN. And it should not only be about representation - here, in the Security Council." According to Volodymyr Zelensky, the application of the veto power could become a key reform that restores the strength of the UN Charter.