The Role of the UN Secretary-General in Maintaining International Peace and Security: Focusing on António Guterres’ Performance

Document Type : Original Article

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Department of Public Law, Faculty of Law and Political Science, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

The Secretary-General of the United Nations, as one of the principal organs of the Organization,plays an important role in maintaining international peace and security. This role is definedon the basis of the express and implied powers of the United Nations Charter, as well asthe functions entrusted to the Secretary-General by the Security Council and the GeneralAssembly. Accordingly, the performance of Secretaries-General in different periods has takendiverse forms, influenced by prevailing international conditions and their individual personalcharacteristics. This research, conducted through a descriptive–analytical approach, examinesthe action capacities of the Secretary-General in the field of international peace and securityand, by reviewing the initiatives of previous Secretaries-General, analyses the performance ofAntónio Guterres. In this context, thirteen major crises during his term of office were identifiedand examined. The findings indicate that Guterres’s approach has largely been confined todiplomatic measures and political statements. His positions have often been characterized byunjustified delays, a cautious, conservative posture, the absence of clear identification of theaggressor and the defending party, and mere calls for the parties to exercise restraint, which,in certain instances, have resulted in partial and inequitable responses. Overall, in light of themultiplicity of international crises during Guterres’s tenure and the growing expectations ofthe international community for the United Nations to play an active and impartial role, hisperformance, in comparison with his predecessors, may be assessed as placing him among theweaker Secretaries-General.

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