On 1 April 2022 in Tallinn, Estonia, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Edgars Rinkēvičs, took part in an international conference, “Small States in the UN Security Council: Working for Peace to Overcome the Scourge of War”. The aim of the event was to examine the role and possibilities of small states in the United Nations Security Council, including in the context of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.
As Edgars Rinkēvičs spoke in the conference session on small state influence in times of great-power rivalry, he underlined the importance of multilateral diplomacy in the pursuit of foreign policy efforts by small states. The Minister pointed out that small states could make a difference in the UN Security Council’s work by ensuring that their thematic priorities and security challenges important for regions are considered. Those states could be skilful negotiators and offer compromises in the examination of complicated issues.
Edgars Rinkēvičs drew attention to the need for an urgent reform of the UN Security Council, whose permanent member, Russia, is destructively blocking decisions and affecting resolutions in the context of war it has been waging.
Seeking to protect a rules-based international order and democratic values, and to contribute to resolving issues related to international peace and security, Latvia will for the first time run as a candidate for the UN Security Council elections in 2025.
Background information
The United Nations Security Council is one of the highest-ranking UN bodies, whose decisions are binding on all the UN member states. It has primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. The Council has five permanent members – China, France, Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States – as well as ten non-permanent members elected for two-year terms. Estonia held a seat in the UN Security Council in 2020-2021.