The legal nature of security council thematic resolutions. Declarations of principles on collective security implemented through operational agendas

This paper examines the legal basis in UN law for the numerous thematic resolutions adopted by the Security Council in recent decades and concludes that these are Decla- rations of Principles on Collective Security based on the general powers conferred on the Council by Article 24 of the United Nations Charter. However, it also highlights that these Declarations of Principles on Collective Security are intrinsically more operational than normative in nature, and this is important for at least three reasons: a) it allows these Declarations to be clearly differentiated from those adopted by the UN General Assembly, thus avoiding questionable, if not counterproductive, overlap; b) it explains why Security Council thematic resolutions cannot be adopted under Chapter VII of the Charter and are therefore not, nor could they be, legally binding; c) is in line with the follow-up to these declarations, namely the birth of real “Agendas” that guarantee their implementation and progressive development also through national action plans, as demonstrated by the paradigmatic model of the “Women, Peace and Security” Agenda.