Permanent members of the United Nations Security Council

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The permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (also known as the Permanent Five, Big Five, or P5) are the five sovereign states to whom the UN Charter of 1945 grants a permanent seat on the UN Security Council: China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, and United States. The permanent members were all Allies in World War II (and the victors of that war), and are the five states with the first and most nuclear weapons. All have the power of veto, which enables any one of them to block any non-"procedural" Council decision, regardless of its level of international support. The remaining 10 members of the UN Security Council are elected by the General Assembly, giving a total of 15 UN member states on the Security Council, which convenes meetings at the headquarters of the United Nations in New York City. Since the establishment of the P5, it has been criticized for a range of reasons. There have been various proposals to reform the UNSC, including the introduction of new permanent...

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