Responding today to a reporter's question about Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's call to abolish permanent membership status and veto power at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that Russia wants to reform the body and expand the number of permanent members.

"We believe that the permanent membership status of the UNSC, as well as the veto power, are very important elements in the entire structure of the United Nations," he said.

The United Nations Security Council meeting at its headquarters in New York, US in January. Photo: *AP*.

The Security Council's primary mandate is to maintain global peace; however, geopolitical rivalries have frequently led to deadlock on many issues within the body.

The five permanent members of the UNSC are the United States, Russia, China, Britain, and France. These nations hold veto power, allowing them to unilaterally block any resolution brought up for discussion. The Security Council also includes 10 non-permanent members, serving two-year terms without veto power.

President Erdogan has long argued that the five permanent members do not accurately reflect the entire international community and cannot make prompt decisions. In 2021, he described the UNSC process as "unfair and outdated, with a handful of countries" controlling the world.

Russian President Vladimir Putin countered at the time, stating that the United Nations "would become meaningless" and a powerless organization if the veto power were abolished.

By 2022, the Turkish President again called for the abolition of the veto power in the UNSC and an expansion of permanent membership.