How did Russia get the Soviet Union's UN Security Council seat?
Russia inherited the Soviet Union's permanent Security Council seat in late 1991 after eleven Commonwealth of Independent States members signed a declaration on the 21st of December 1991 supporting the transfer. Boris Yeltsin sent a letter to Secretary-General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar requesting that 'Russian Federation' replace 'Union of Soviet Socialist Republics' in all UN organs. With no objections from UN members, Yeltsin personally took the seat at the Security Council meeting on the 31st of January 1992.
Was Russia's succession to the Soviet Union's UN seat legal?
The legality has been disputed. International lawyer Yehuda Zvi Blum argued that because the Soviet Union was terminated as a legal entity, its UN membership should have lapsed and Russia should have applied for admission like other successor states. Others countered that Russia's geographic and demographic size, combined with historical continuity from the Russian Empire through the Soviet period, justified the succession. The Vienna Convention on Succession of States in respect of Treaties did not apply because it did not enter into force until 1996.
Why did the UN allow Russia to keep the Soviet seat without a formal vote?
The UN membership did not object when Secretary-General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar circulated Yeltsin's request in late 1991. Russia accounted for more than 75% of the Soviet economy, the majority of its population, and 75% of its land mass, making it the logical candidate among former Soviet republics. Some analysts also noted that eliminating Soviet and then Russian membership would have created a constitutional crisis for the Security Council.
What happened at the UN after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022?
The UN General Assembly held the eleventh emergency special session on the 2nd of March 2022. The resulting resolution condemned Russia's invasion, demanded a full withdrawal of Russian forces, and called for reversal of Russia's recognition of the People's Republics of Donetsk and Luhansk. The resolution was sponsored by 96 countries and passed with 141 votes in favour, 5 against, and 35 abstentions.
Has there been a push to reform the UN Security Council since Russia took the Soviet seat?
The years following the Soviet breakup saw a sharp rise in proposals for Security Council reform. In 2005, Secretary-General Kofi Annan's report 'In Larger Freedom' proposed finalizing arrangements to add more permanent seats as soon as possible. Campaigns to abolish the veto also gained support, though adoption remains unlikely because it would require the consent of all five permanent members, including Russia.
Could the Russian UN succession be a precedent for Scottish or Northern Irish independence?
Professor Andrew MacLeod of Kings College argued that the Russian example could apply if Scotland or Northern Ireland left the United Kingdom, potentially raising questions about whether a reinstated Kingdom of England could claim continuity for UN membership. Critics pointed to the Treaty of Union of 1706 and noted that Scottish independence would likely reduce the UK's size rather than terminate it as a legal entity, as Irish independence did in 1922.