Making for "strange bedfellows": the Women, Peace and Security agenda after UNSCRs 2467 and 2493

In 2019, a year before the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) adopted two more resolutions - UNSCRs 2467 and 2493 - under the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) thematic agenda. The WPS agenda is considered revolutionary for bringing women's rights and security into the UNSC; however, it also reflects the precariousness of the alliance between feminist activists and the UNSC. During the drafting of UNSCRs 2467 and 2493, the United States (US), Russia, and China - all permanent members of the UNSC - objected to the inclusion of certain language in the final texts. The US pushed for the deletion of language on sexual and reproductive health from UNSCR 2467, while Russia and China challenged the definition of women human rights defenders in UNSCR 2493. These objections epitomize and contribute to the global pushback on women's rights and security, which foregrounds concerns that the UNSC and feminist activists make for "strange bedfellows." In this article, we consider whether the UNSC has been used as a forum to damage women's rights and security.