Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Ireland has consistently opposed all use of the veto at the UN Security Council. During Ireland's term as an elected member of the UNSC (2021-2022) we saw first-hand how the veto can be used to prevent the Council from fulfilling its mandate.

Ireland has consistently called for the power of the veto held by the Permanent Five (P5) members of the Security Council to be abolished. The veto is an anachronism and has no place in the 21st century. Permanent membership should be about timeframes, institutional knowledge, representation and effectiveness, not access to unilateral power.

Ireland has been actively engaged in the Intergovernmental Negotiation process to reform the Council, ongoing since 2009, consistently making the case for abolition of the veto.

Ireland was a member from the outset of the core group of states, led by Liechtenstein, who proposed the resolution on veto use that was adopted by the General Assembly on 26 April 2022. This initiative does not prevent the use of the veto. However, it does mean that now, whenever a veto is used, the Permanent Member responsible must explain their decision to the General Assembly. We hope that this will seek to raise the political cost of using it. At the very least, it gives the wider UN membership, at the General Assembly, a voice, when the Security Council has been prevented from acting by the use of a veto. Ireland has joined more than 100 other UN Member States in signing up to the France-Mexico initiative, which calls for the suspension of veto powers in the case of atrocity crimes.

Ireland is actively engaged in seeking reforms and making a positive impact across the work of the entire United Nations. We can have particular influence when we serve on decision-making bodies such as the Security Council and the Human Rights Council. Ireland is seeking membership of the Human Rights Council for the period 2027 – 2029, where we will continue to use our voice to push for accountability, compliance with international law and the promotion of human rights.