Russia takes over the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for the month of October today. Russia’s UN representative, Vasily Nebenzya, will act as chairman of the council and will be responsible for setting the agenda for the month that he presides. On average, the UNSC holds around 20 meetings on various issues selected by the chair.
Russia takes over from South Korea and will be replaced by Sierra Leone in November. Russia previously filled the post in July 2024, when agenda items included the renewal of mandates for UN missions in Haiti and Yemen, the review of arms sanctions embargo on the Central African Republic, as well as several meetings relating to the Middle East, Palestinian, and the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Despite Russian objections an emergency meeting on Ukraine following Russian missile attacks was held on July 8 which Nebenzya later counter-balanced with: a debate on July 18 on cooperation with regional organizations including the [Russian-led] Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), as well as [China’s] Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), and a July 24 debate on the “threat to international peace and security” caused by Western weapons supplies to Kyiv.
It was announced on Russia’s official UN X channel that Nebenzya will present his monthly agenda at 12:45 p.m. ET (7:45 p.m. Ukrainian time). Although he and his staff have given very little away on what will be included, it seems likely, based on its previous track record, that Ukraine, Gaza / Israel, the Middle East, and what Moscow terms as “false accusations” of aerial incursions over NATO airspace will feature.
Two probable agenda items: Iran and the UN Charter
Firstly, Russia is likely to bring up nuclear sanctions against Iran, which were instituted under UN Resolution 2231 in 2015 and that have been regularly reviewed and renewed ever since. However, Nebenzya, supported by the Russian Foreign Ministry, have said the latest one-month renewal made in September has no legal validity because the process used violated proper procedures. The Russian position is that, as a result, the resolution will expire on Oct. 18, after which all restrictions and provisions outlined in the resolution will no longer be in force.
The second debate, almost definitely to be called, will be on Oct. 24 – the 80th anniversary of the founding of the UN. The Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced during a recent press conference that the occasion would be used to debate issues surrounding the UN Charter – which many nations have accused Russia of continually flouting.
However, in the tone Lavrov used, it is unlikely that Russia will admit to being in breach of the code: “Our presidency falls on the anniversary date of Oct. 24, the day the United Nations was founded. We are planning to hold a special meeting on that day. Not to reiterate our support for the principles laid down by the founding fathers in the organization’s Charter, but to see how these principles should be implemented today,” Lavrov said.