June 01, 2016•Update: June 08, 2016
ENTEBBE, Uganda
On his East African tour, Turkey's president again declared that "the world is bigger than five," slamming the veto power of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).
"The world cannot be given up to five permanent members' initiative. You cannot take this situation, formed in the midst of World War I conditions, and shove it down humanity's throat," President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at Uganda’s Makerere University, where he received an honorary doctorate.
Erdogan decried how the Security Council has no African nations among its permanent members.
"Is there a Muslim country [among the permanent members], while there are 1.7 billion Muslim people in the world? No. What kind of justice is this? What kind of law is this?" he added.
The UN Security Council, which has primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security, has 15 members, including five permanent members with veto power over any resolution: China, France, Britain, the U.S., and Russia.
Permanent members often use their veto to protect their interests or those of their allies, and in the past, Erdogan has criticized the blocking of UN resolutions on Syria by Russia and China.
Erdogan also underlined Turkish ties to Africa.
"We believe that here [Africa] is a continent of opportunities for the happiness, peace and welfare of African nations," Erdogan said.
He added that Africa will be focused on the 21st century.
