UN Security Council

Definition

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is the principal organ of the UN responsible for the maintenance of international peace and security. Composed of 15 members — five permanent (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) with veto power, and ten rotating non-permanent members — it is the only UN body whose resolutions are legally binding on all member states. The UNSC can authorize sanctions, peacekeeping operations, and the use of military force. The veto power of the P5 has been both its defining feature and greatest criticism, as any permanent member can block substantive action regardless of majority support.