Collective Security and the Economic Interventionism of the UN--the need for a coherent and Integrated Approach

Abstract

The scope of the collective security system established under the United Nations Charter has expanded significantly since the end of the cold war to cover new fields. An increasing linkage between maintenance of peace and economic reconstruction has lead the United Nations to play an unprecedented role within the economic realm, be it by the widening of the range of measures adopted by the Security Council under Chapter VII of the Charter with economic consequences or through the direct management of economies in post-conflict situations as part of a global strategy to restore peace in war-torn territories. This evolution has brought to light the limits of the existing UN collective security system as a framework to deal with economic issues. It is submitted that the ‘derogatory’ logic under Article 103 of the Charter and under WTO law through its exception clauses is no longer sufficient to review and assess the UN action in the economic sphere. The promotion and integration of a broader set of principles and rules of international economic law such as principles of fair competition, non-discrimination, or transparency, would help enhance the legitimacy of actions of the UN Security Council. Moreover, this article argues that taking into account international economic law would contribute to achieve UN goals in post conflict situations by paving the way for a stable and safe economic environment in a long-term perspective. The recently established Peacebuilding Commission may contribute to develop a coherent and integrated legal approach in this area.