July 3rd, 2015 By Michelle McKenna – Senior Fellow The 70th Anniversary of the United Nations offers the perfect opportunity to reflect on its successes and failures. Undoubtedly the world is far more secure today through the existence of the ...

Reform of the Security Council must include reform of the way in which it works in practice, as well as changes to the membership

The veto power blocks the Council from being able to take decisive action, as demonstrated by Kosovo and, more recently, Syria

Most states agree that the size of the Security Council needs to be enlarged in order for it to become more representative of the world today

The biggest obstacle to achieving comprehensive Security Council reform is that it may require an amendment to the UN Charter

There is one major issue that faces the Security Council: legitimacy.

If the Security Council fails to reform it is ultimately doomed to fail.

When the UN was formed, 22% of its members were in the Security Council; now that figure lies at only 8%.

This article deals with the premises that ought to be considered when analysing developments in China. It then goes on to suggest why one ought not to be disappointed, but be cautiously optimistic of the reforms laid out in the Third Plenum concluded on 12th November 2013.