Q.Read the passage given below carefully and answer the questions that follow : On the reform of structures and processes, the biggest discussion has been on the functioning of the Security Council. Related to this has been the demand for an increase in the UN Security Council's permanent and non-permanent membership so that the realities of contemporary world politics are better reflected in the structure of the organisation. In particular, there are proposals to increase membership from Asia, Africa and South America. Beyond this, the US and other Western countries want improvements in the UN's budgetary procedures and its administration.
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Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →The Security Council, with its five permanent veto-wielding members, faces mounting pressure for reform to reflect today's multipolar world, particularly through expanded membership from underrepresented continents and fairer decision-making processes.
The United Nations Security Council stands at the heart of global peace and security architecture, yet its structure remains frozen in the power realities of 1945. Five nations—the United States, Russia (successor to the Soviet Union), China, the United Kingdom, and France—hold permanent seats with the extraordinary privilege of veto power. This means any one of these five can single-handedly block a substantive resolution, regardless of how many other members support it. The Council also includes ten non-permanent members elected for two-year terms, but they wield no veto.
This arrangement made sense in the immediate aftermath of World War II, when these five victorious powers dominated the international order. Seven decades later, the world looks profoundly different. Economic and political power has diffused across continents. Nations like India, Brazil, Japan, Germany, and South Africa have emerged as major players, yet they remain outside the permanent membership circle. The entire African continent, with 54 countries, has no permanent voice. Latin America and much of Asia find themselves similarly marginalized in the body that decides matters of war and peace.
The reform debate centers on two intertwined issues: representation and legitimacy. Critics argue that the Security Council's composition no longer mirrors contemporary geopolitical realities. Decisions that affect the entire world are effectively controlled by a small club of mostly Western powers (four of the five permanent members are Western or Western-aligned). This creates a legitimacy deficit—when the Council acts, or fails to act, many nations see the hand of narrow national interests rather than genuine collective security concerns.
The non-permanent membership was expanded once before, in 1965, when the Council grew from eleven total members to fifteen. The number of non-permanent seats increased from six to ten, recognizing the wave of decolonization that had dramatically increased UN membership.
Proposals for reform typically call for adding new permanent members from underrepresented regions—usually mentioning candidates from Asia (India, Japan), Africa (South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt), and South America (Brazil). Some proposals also suggest increasing non-permanent seats further. Yet every reform proposal runs into the same obstacle: any change to the UN Charter requires approval by two-thirds of the General Assembly and ratification by all five current permanent members. Each of those five has a vested interest in preserving its privileged position, creating a classic collective action problem. …
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