Maureen Okpe
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Yusuf Tuggar, has called for the democratization of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), describing it as “clumsy and not working.”
In a statement signed by the Special Adviser, Media and Communications, to the Honorable Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alkasim Abdulkadir, and made available to Global Sentinel, Tuggar expressed his views at a gathering in Davos, Switzerland, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting.
Tuggar stressed the need for the values of democracy to be mirrored in the world’s highest decision-making body, which he believes is currently not fulfilling its intended purpose.
“To begin with, the UN Security Council needs to be democratized. Clearly, it is not fit for purpose. We should do away with the veto powers on the UN Security Council; clearly, it’s clumsy and not working. Again, when you look at the global security architecture, it is impacted by such undemocratic entities that influence decisions,” he said.
He highlighted the diminishing role of diplomacy in conflict resolution, expressing concern that security chiefs and defence policymakers are increasingly taking the forefront in global security matters.
“We have a situation where, in the past, during the bipolar world, there was neutral ground for diplomats to engage, allowing diplomacy to resolve issues, preempt conflicts, and diffuse them. Unfortunately, we don’t have that anymore. We are increasingly seeing a situation where diplomats and diplomacy are taking the backseat, and disagreements are being securitised,” Tuggar lamented.
The minister also noted the shift from diplomatic resolutions to security-focused approaches and the need for a more democratic and effective UNSC that aligns with the values of democracy and the rule of law.
“Of course, for the guy with the hammer, everything is a nail,” he said.