The UN Security Council Through The Numbers: How Does The Council Maintain International Peace in Practice?

The recent major ineffectiveness or inactivity of the UN Security Council in the Russian aggression over Ukraine, Israel’s wars in Gaza and Lebanon or the conflict in Sudan, has sparked renewed criticism and calls for reform of this body. The Council was envisioned to be the international community’s primary authority in the maintenance of peace and security, yet too often it seems like the Council is failing in its responsibility. Thus, a question arises as to how the Council has acted in its responsibility so far in practice? How engaged the Council was overall; where did it (prefer to) take action, how long it took the Council to act, or what were the main driving factors for its (in)action, are some of the main subquestions that should be answered in this regard. Drawing on numerous different studies on the Council’s engagement in various types of conflicts and crises, this work presents their main findings and interprets them in order to understand the Council as an institution in practice. Putting these studies side by side with an interpretation of the UN Charter provisions referring to the powers and responsibilities of the Council, as well as subsequent normative and other practical developments related to the (UN) security system, this work offers thoughts on how to interpret the Council’s record and how to address some of its failures.