The Trend of Application of Veto Right at the Security Council (1946-2009): The Maintenance of International Peace and Security or Protection of the Permanent Member's Interests?

With the establishment of the UNO in 1945 and consequently the Security Council, the functioning of the Organization has always been affected with the policies and stances of the permanent members enjoying the privilege of veto power. The states that are entitled with this privilege have acted on the basis of their national interests and their relations with other countries regarding the international issues and resorting to the veto power at the Security Council. Our principal question is on the basis of the detailed examination of cases of veto application in half a century, whether this right has been in accordance with the main function and duty of the SC which is maintaining international peace and security or its application has been used for protection of the interests of the permanent members and their allies? While explaining the problem, the article applies critical theory in International Relations for the theoretical framework of this research and later on goes to analyze the detailed data of the cases of application of veto. The conclusion proves that the veto right has been almost used for ensuring the interests of the great powers and their allies rather than keeping international peace and securities.