UN Security Council Vetoes by Country (1946-2026)

About This Dataset

The total number of vetoes cast by each of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council since 1946. A single veto from any permanent member (China, France, Russia, the UK or the US) blocks a resolution regardless of how many other members support it.

✨ AI Insight

Russia, counted together with the former Soviet Union, has cast by far the most vetoes at 130 - most of them during the early Cold War, when the USSR was diplomatically isolated in the Council. The United States is second with 89, a number that has grown steadily since the 1970s, with a large share used to shield Israel from Council action. The United Kingdom (29), China (20) and France (16) have used the power far more sparingly, and both France and the UK have not cast a veto in decades. The heavy concentration of vetoes among just two members illustrates how the veto has functioned mainly as a tool of great-power rivalry rather than routine diplomacy.

Source: United Nations / UN Security Council records

Key Findings

Auto-computed highlights from this dataset

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Russia (incl. USSR) leads with 130 in All Time.

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Average value in All Time: 57 · median: 29.

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Gap in All Time: Russia (incl. USSR) is 8.1× larger than France.