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UN Security Council and the P5 veto
Since 1945; 5 permanent members· Alliance or organization
FactTreaties, membership, measured data, events.
The UN's 15-member body whose decisions legally bind all states, dominated by five permanent members with vetoes.
See it on the Geopolitics map →The picture
The US, UK, France, Russia and China, the 1945 victors, hold permanent seats and vetoes. Ten others serve two-year terms; in 2026 they are Bahrain, Colombia, DR Congo, Denmark, Greece, Latvia, Liberia, Pakistan, Panama and Somalia. Resolutions need nine votes and no veto. Under Chapter VII of the Charter it can impose sanctions and authorize force. Vetoes have frozen it on Ukraine (Russia) and often on Israel (the US), though it endorsed the 2025 Gaza plan.
Why it matters
It decides whether wars, sanctions and peacekeeping carry global legal weight, and the veto lets any great power shield itself or its friends.
Key facts and numbers
The UN Charter (Chapters V and VII), Council voting records and the veto list kept by the UN's Dag Hammarskjöld Library.
What to watch
Debated: reform. India, Japan, Germany, Brazil and African states want permanent seats, but any Charter change needs all five permanent members' approval.
Connections (6)
▸United States holds a veto in UN Security Council and the P5 vetoFact
The relationship
As one of five permanent members, the US can block any resolution alone. It has cast about 90 vetoes since 1970, roughly half shielding Israel, including several Gaza ceasefire drafts in 2023–25. It also uses the Council to legitimize its plans, as with the Gaza peace resolution of November 2025.
Since when and why
UN headquarters, New York; permanent seat since 1945; first US veto in 1970, on Rhodesia.
How we know
Article 27 of the UN Charter and the official veto list kept by the UN's Dag Hammarskjöld Library.
What to watch
Whether US funding cuts and exits from UN bodies weaken its sway in the Council, and whether it would ever accept reform diluting its veto.
▸Iran's nuclear program faces UN snapback sanctions from UN Security Council and the P5 vetoFact
The relationship
The 2015 nuclear deal was written into Security Council Resolution 2231, which lifted UN sanctions but let any party 'snap them back'. Britain, France and Germany triggered it in August 2025, saying Iran had breached the deal; the arms embargo, missile limits and asset freezes returned on September 27, 2025.
Since when and why
UN headquarters, New York; the European notice of August 28, 2025; a Russian–Chinese bid to delay failed 4–9 on September 26, 2025.
How we know
Resolution 2231's text, the European letter, Council voting records, and the IAEA board's September 2026 referral of Iran to the Council.
What to watch
Disputed: Russia, China and Iran call the snapback legally void and refuse to enforce it; how far other states comply is unclear.
▸UN Security Council and the P5 veto endorsed Gaza ceasefire, Trump's 20-point plan and Board of PeaceFact
The relationship
The Council gave Trump's 20-point Gaza plan international legal backing in Resolution 2803. It welcomed the Board of Peace as a transitional authority and authorized an International Stabilization Force, both until the end of 2027, with reports every six months. That mandate lets countries such as Indonesia send troops.
Since when and why
New York, November 17, 2025; adopted 13–0, with Russia and China abstaining.
How we know
The text of Resolution 2803 and the Council's voting record and explanations of vote.
What to watch
Whether the stabilization force deploys at scale and Hamas disarms; Russia, which drafted a rival text, and China objected to the plan's limited UN role.
▸UN Security Council and the P5 veto authorized UN forces in Korean peninsula standoff (armistice since 1953)Fact
The relationship
When North Korea invaded in June 1950, the Council demanded its withdrawal, urged members to help the South and created a US-led unified command. The Soviet Union could not veto because it was boycotting the Council over China's seat. Sixteen countries sent combat troops, and the UN Command still exists today.
Since when and why
New York, Resolutions 82, 83 and 84 of June 25, June 27 and July 7, 1950; the UN Command signed the 1953 armistice.
How we know
The resolutions' texts and voting records, and the armistice agreement signed by the UN Command, North Korea and China.
What to watch
Disputed: Moscow called the 1950 votes illegal without it. Today North Korea sanctions are weakly enforced; a Russian veto ended the UN panel monitoring them in 2024.
▸UN Security Council and the P5 veto is deadlocked by vetoes over Russia–Ukraine warFact
The relationship
As a permanent member, Russia can veto any Security Council action against it, and did so in February and September 2022. The UN's response shifted to the General Assembly, which has no veto but passes only non-binding resolutions. In 2025 a US-drafted text calling for peace without blaming Russia did pass.
Since when and why
New York: Russian vetoes on February 25, 2022 (on the invasion) and September 30, 2022 (on the annexations); Resolution 2774 adopted on February 24, 2025.
How we know
UN voting records are public; the General Assembly condemned the invasion 141–5 in March 2022.
What to watch
Whether the P5 veto system can ever be reformed, and whether the Council could authorize a peacekeeping force for Ukraine, which Russia would likely block.
▸UN Security Council and the P5 veto is the power center of United NationsFact
The relationship
The Charter gives the Council 'primary responsibility' for international peace, and only its decisions bind all members. It also recommends new members and the Secretary-General to the General Assembly, so permanent members' vetoes shape who joins and who leads the UN, as in the 2026 race to succeed António Guterres.
Since when and why
UN Charter, signed in San Francisco on June 26, 1945, Articles 24, 25 and 97.
How we know
The Charter text, membership votes, and the Council's straw polls on Secretary-General candidates held from July 2026.
What to watch
Whether the General Assembly, where there is no veto, can gain influence when the Council deadlocks, as it has on Ukraine since 2022.