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`We the Peoples`, in whose name the United Nations was created in 1945, assess the success or failure of the organisation primarily by its effectiveness in maintaining or restoring peace and stability in the world. The work of the Security Council, which has been charged with the responsibility of securing and preserving peace, is shrouded in secrecy for the most part, except for the occasional public show case meetings which it holds from time to time. How does the Security Council conduct its business? How does it deal with the challenges which it is called upon to handle every time a serious crisis breaks out? How does it arrive at its decisions which ~re embodied in the form of resolutions or presidential statements? How do the permanent members strike deals among themselves and take care to accommodate each other`s concerns? What role does the Secretary General play in this crucial field? What is the state of relationship between him and the Security Council?
In this unique and unprecedented and intimate account, Chinmaya Gharekhan takes us through the meetings of the Security Council as it debated emergency situations during the First Gulf War of 1991, Iraq`s WMD programme and the work of the Special Commission set up to eliminate them, the beginnings of the Oil-for-Food programme, the Balkan War of the early 1990s, the Rwanda Genocide, the Lockerbie Disaster involving Libya and so on. There are two chapters giving graphic accounts of the election of the Secretary General, a process which is shrouded in complete secrecy. The Horseshoe Table gives a ringside view of the functioning of this most vital organ which, in theory, is an instrument at service of the international community but over which it has hardly any control.
ISBN-9788177584530
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Pages : 328
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