Poster

[1Z124] Determinants of United Nations Security Council Voting Behavior in Situations Requiring Action under R2P: State Relationships and Characteristics

*Misato Kobayashi¹ (1. Kobe University)

Keywords:Responsibility to Protect, United Nations Security Council, mass atrocities

Responsibility to Protect (R2P) is a norm to protect people from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity by the state. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has an important role in implementing R2P. However, the number of R2P resolutions has decreased while the number of humanitarian crises has increased. The existing literature on this topic has primarily attributed the failure to adopt the R2P resolution to the exercise of the veto power. However, justifying non-adoption through the exercise of veto is a tautological argument, thus making it insufficient. Additionally, the existing literature on the reasons for members' voting behavior tends to focus on a single country, with a limited empirical analysis. This study focuses on relationships between countries with a high risk of genocide and other atrocities (risk countries) and the UNSC members, and their domestic politics, aiming to identify factors on members’ voting behavior systematically. Statistical analysis of data collected from 2011 to 2021 for risk and member countries reveals that the level of democracy in member countries and the political relationship between them and risk countries increase the probability of voting in favor of R2P resolutions. The results of this research have important implications for understanding the states' relationships and characteristics that influence voting behavior, rather than attributing the non-adoption of resolutions solely to the exercise of the veto in situations where R2P is called for. Furthermore, the results suggest that promoting democracy within the UNSC is crucial for enhancing the UNSC's capacity to address humanitarian crises.