Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It can try. The one thing we should not be doing is giving up on it because it is the only show in town when it comes to international intervention in serious conflict situations. Ireland will continue to advocate for UN reform and Security Council reform. We believe the use of the veto is abused. We also believe the make-up of the Security Council is not reflective of the world today. It is a post-Second World War structure in many ways. The idea that there is no African permanent representation on the UN Security Council is extraordinary when one thinks about the current population and also the population trends which predict that we will see an extra 1 billion people on the Continent of Africa in the next 25 to 30 years. Ireland wants to be a brave and consistent voice on issues that are important to its people in the areas of humanitarian assistance, peacekeeping and conflict prevention. We have a Secretary General of the UN now who is a big believer in reform. Secretary General Guterres needs the support of countries like Ireland and many others. If we are on the Security Council, we can push that reform agenda hard in a much more effective way than if we are not on it.

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