A Challenge To Sovereigntyty In The United Nations: A Challenge To Sovereignty

The UN also poses a challenge to sovereignty through the obligations required of its members. Firstly, each member is required to make both military and financial contributions in order to allow the UN to function more effectively. By making this contribution a requirement instead of an option, the UN gains partial control over the economic and military sovereignty of its members. In reality, this poses little challenge to sovereignty as membership in the UN is freely entered into by states. The same can be said about international laws and norms- a “norm” being an international standard generally adhered to by the majority of states- implemented by the UN. By enjoying sovereign equality in the UN regardless of power, states are subjected

Not only are there minority governments embodying entire states, but there is an imbalance between the representation of the global west and south. With a clear imbalance comes an implementation of norms that seem to only apply to “western” culture. This presents a challenge to sovereignty as in a way, the cultural sovereignty of the global south is being violated. On the other hand, although the UN requires its members to follow the laws and norms it puts in place, it has no real power to enforce this. As Macqueen (2010; p. 40) says, “there is no supranational sovereignty that can forcefully impose order, or insist on the execution of obligations.” Is there really any violation of sovereignty if the UN does not have to power to support it? I believe there is not, and that the state negates any challenge to sovereignty by choosing to comply with international standards. Finally, although there is no supranational authority, the security council acts as the closest thing to an international authority. The five permanent members of the council are the only countries capable of nuclear deterrence, lending them the power they need to support their decisions and remain the most powerful

However, as the nature of conflict changes and the international system edges towards a global society based on interdependence, some argue that this traditional notion must be updated. Tony Blair, for example, called for sovereignty to be “reconceptualised” (Bellamy, 2009; p.25). This is most likely due to the rise of humanitarian crises and the UN’s growing role in intervention. With global media coverage, it is harder for governments to ignore the will of the people, and public pressure to intervene in said crises. Therefore, humanitarian intervention is being viewed more as a responsibility than an option. The current system cannot effectively deal with this, as the debates over the violation of traditional sovereignty slow the process. As Lu says (2006; p. 81) “Critical opportunities to engage in preventive and non military actions, before a crisis explodes or escalates to the level of mass atrocity, are missed when the concepts of intervention and the use of force are conflated”. The problem of sovereignty blocks the UN from completing its mandate of “maintaining international peace and security”. Moreover, Kofi Annan points out that state sovereignty must not replace human rights: “the Charter protects the sovereignty of peoples… Sovereignty implies responsibility, not just power.” (Bellamy 2009; p. 28) Again we are reminded that governments should be