Source · Select Committees · Foreign Affairs Committee
Recommendation 11
11
Rejected
Paragraph: 22
If the crisis continues to worsen, and in the absence of meaningful action through other...
Conclusion
If the crisis continues to worsen, and in the absence of meaningful action through other United Nations mechanisms, the Uniting for Peace option may be another viable avenue for action, as the General Assembly has already shown consensus on an arms embargo.
Government response summary AI-generated
The government notes the suggestion to use the 'Uniting for Peace' procedure but states that the UN General Assembly is already addressing the Myanmar crisis, and invoking UfP would not change the existing prerogatives.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Paragraph Reference:
22
Government Response
Rejected
HM Government · verbatim extract
Rejected
AND 12. We recommend that the Government explore the feasibility of moving for a Uniting for Peace resolution if there is a failure to reach consensus in the Security Council within the next three months. (Paragraph 22) We note the Committee’s suggestion on the possibility of using the “Uniting for Peace” (UfP) procedure, which, if there is sufficient support, allows the UN General Assembly (UNGA) to meet, if necessary in an Emergency Special Session (ESS), to consider a matter on which the Security Council is essentially blocked by a veto from acting upon. In practice, however, the General Assembly is already seized of the Myanmar crisis and is already exercising its prerogatives in respect of the crisis. This would not be changed by invoking the UfP procedure. On 26 February, the General Assembly convened to discuss the situation in Myanmar and the UK used this as an opportunity to provide a platform for the NUG. On 18 June, the UK worked closely with partners to deliver a General Assembly resolution, adopted with 119 votes in favour, on the situation in Myanmar. This resolution strongly condemned the crisis in Myanmar and included a commitment to prevent the flow of arms to Myanmar. The UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy on Myanmar also takes her mandate from, and reports to, the General Assembly. UNGA also addresses Myanmar’s human rights situation annually. While UfP allows UNGA to discuss the issue and to make recommendations, it does not allow UNGA to authorise measures that it cannot otherwise do under the UN Charter.
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