International Political Institution United Nations

(Along with Reforms)

1) Introduction
i. The United Nations was established to preserve peace
between states after the Second World War.
ii. In a number of ways, the institutions of the United Nations
reflected lessons learned from its predecessor, the League
of Nations.
iii. The institutions and mechanisms of the United Nations reflect
both the demands of great power politics (i.e. Security Council
veto) and universalism. They also reflect demands to address
the needs and interests of people, as well as the needs and
interest of states. The tensions between these various demands
are a key feature of UN development.
iv. The UN has its headquarters in New York.
2) Historical Background
i. Two years after the outbreak of the Second World War the British
Prime Minister Winston Churchill met with President Roosevelt
of the United States.
ii. Between them they issued a document called the Atlantic Charter,
setting out their war aims. Apart from the defeat of Nazi
Germany, they sought peace, freedom, collaboration, and security
between states, overseen by a wider and permanent system of
general security.
iii. The Atlantic Charter contained the seeds of the United Nations,
whose principles were adopted by 26 states in January 1942
when they signed a Declaration of the United Nations.
iv. In 1944, representatives of the great powers (the Soviet Union,
the United States, China, and Britain) met at Dumbarton Oaks
in the United States to draw up firm proposals for the new
international organization, the successor to the League of
Nations. In 1945, 51 states met at the United Nations
Conference in San Francisco to debate the terms of the UN
Charter.
3) Objectives of UN
 i. to maintain international peace, to develop friendly
relations among states, and to cooperate internationally in
solving international economic, social, cultural and
humanitarian problems and in promoting respect for
human rights and fundamental freedoms.
4) Organs if UNO
i. The General Assembly;
i. The only time that all member states meet together is in
the General Assembly. Here representatives from each of
the 187 states that make up the UN gather every year to
discuss the worldís problems in a global parliamentary
setting. Much of the Assemblyís work goes on in its six
committees:
1. First Committee ñ disarmament issues, outer
space, political and security issues
2. Second Committee ñ economic and financial issues
3. Third Committee ñ social, humanitarian, and
cultural matters
4. Fourth Committee ñ colonial matters
5. Fifth Committee ñ administrative and
budgetary matters
6. Sixth Committee ñ legal issues
ii. The Assembly has little influence in world politics. It can
debate any issue it chooses, adopt Resolutions with a
two- thirds majority, help elect members of other UN
bodies, and vote on the UN budget. Ultimately, whatever
power it has depends on its moral authority as a reflection
of global opinion.
ii. the Security Council;
i. Security Council remains ready to meet at any time
whenever there is a threat to international peace
and security.
ii. There are 15 members of the Security Council. Five are
permanent (the P5), and ten non-permanent members are
elected for a period of two years from regional groups
within the UN: Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin
America, Western Europe, and Oceania.
 iii. The P5 are the United States, Russia, China, France, and
Britain. Decisions of the Council have to be accepted by a
majority of members, and must include the P5, each of
which is able to veto a decision.
iii. the UN Secretariat;
iv. the Economic and Social Council;
v. the International Court of Justice;
vi. the Trusteeship Council.
vii. Apart from the other four organs, the UN includes a
variety of bodies known as Specialized Agencies, which
regulate specific activities and set world standards. They
include the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World
Bank, the World Health Organization (WHO), the Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO), the United Nations
Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO),
the UN International Childrenís Emergency Fund (UNICEF),
the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), and the
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
5) Evolution of UN System
a. The cold war and the decolonization process had discouraged
more active involvement by the United Nations within states, due
to the constant use of the veto by the great powers.
b. The UN did oversee the complex process of decolonization,
which led to a rapid expansion in the number of member
states in the 1950s and 1960s. It also developed the practice
of peacekeeping, which was in part designed to prevent the
superpowers from intervening in conflicts that might then
escalate into a direct confrontation between them.
c. After the cold war, it became more difficult for states and
diplomats to accept that what happened within states was of
no concern to outsiders.
d. It became more common for governments to see active
membership in the United Nations as serving their
national interest as well as being morally right.
e. By the mid-1990s the UN had become involved in maintaining
international peace and security by resisting aggression between
 states, by attempting to resolve disputes within states (civil wars),
and by focusing on conditions within states, including economic,
social, and political conditions. Such as the successful mediation
efforts from 1988 to 1990 related to long-festering regional
conflicts: Iranñ Iraq, Afghanistan, Cambodia, Namibia, and El
Salvador.
f. New justifications for intervention in states were being considered
by the 1990s. Most operations of the United Nations were justified
in the traditional way: as a response to a threat to international
peace and security.
g. The number of institutions within the UN system that address
economic and social issues has significantly increased. Several
Programmes and Funds were created in response to Global
Conferences.
h. Despite a shortage of funds and coordination problems, the UN
has done important work in key economic and social areas.
i. In the mid- to late 1990s under the leadership of then Secretary-
General Kofi Annan, the UN embarked on an overarching reform
effort.
6) Reasons for decline
i. Patterns of war have changed. The Charter of the UN is based
on the principles of sovereignty and non-intervention inthe
internal affairs of states. The UN is unable to respond
effectively to armed conflict that blurs the line between civil
and interstate war.
ii. Despite the end of the cold war, the UN is only as effective
as its member states, particularly the P5, allow it to be.
iii. The UN lacks its own military forces, and therefore relies on
member states to make forces available to the Secretary-
General on request.
iv. It is slow to respond to crises, and cannot act in those areas
that are regarded as legitimate spheres of influence by any of
the P5, especially the United States, Russia, and China.
v. The UN is wholly funded by its member states, particularly
the P5. This enables them to use their financial power to
promote their own national interests at the UN.
 vi. At the end of the twentieth century, there has
been much discussion about how to reform
the UN.
7) Reforms of UN
i. Proposals have been put forward to make the
organization more representative of the changing
balance of power in world politics. For example,
the P5 represent the victors of the Second World
War rather than the most important states of the
twenty-first century.
ii. Some commentators argue that Japan, Germany,
and India deserve greater recognition and status
in the Security Council.
iii. In addition, there has been much debate over
whether and how to provide the UN with more
financial and military power to respond to crises
deemed to be within its remit.
iv. Unless the United Nations is reformed,
the gap between expectation and
performance is unlikely to be closed.
v. The Millennium Development Goals have focused
attention on measurable socioeconomic targets and
have further integrated the work of the UN at the
country level, but progress towards reaching the goals
has been uneven.
vi. This would be unfortunate, since the United
Nations remains the only international organization
that approximates a form of global governance.
vii. Reform of the economic and social
arrangements of the UN aimed at improving
coordination, eliminating duplication, and clarifying
spheres of responsibility is pertinent. These efforts
would strengthen the norms of the multilateral
system.
8) Conclusion