A Machiavellian Moment? The Security Council and the Rule of Law, in International Organizations Law Review

This article examines the limits to the powers of the United Nations Security Council. The suggested thesis is that mandatory standards, and in particular the mandatory standards to protect human rights, constitute a limitation on the powers of the Council and that compliance with this limit will be subject to control by domestic courts. In order to avoid such scrutiny, the United Nations system should establish rules and procedures to ensure compliance with minimum standards of protection of human rights into national law.