The Role of the UN Security Council in Addressing and Providing Responses to Peace and Security Risks Resulting from Sea Level Rise

Sea level rise is becoming one of the most serious threats to human and international security. Not surprisingly, attempts to link security and climate change have been brought to the debate of the United Nations Security Council since 2007. This chapter aims to explore how the debate has evolved by focusing on: (1) which are the security risks raised by sea level rise; (2) what legal challenges need to be addressed; and (3) what role the UN Security Council could play in facing the increasing uncertainty because of climate-related impacts. To this end the first part provides an overview of the 2007–2021 debates held at the UN Security Council on climate change and their evolution to identify the key trends and the connection with sea level rise. The second part is based on official documents and the emerging literature and focuses specifically on the adverse impacts of sea level rise on international security and peace. The final part draws some conclusions about the role of the UN Security Council in this respect.