Inside the UN: The Formation and Structure of the United Nations

 

"More than ever before in human history, we share a common destiny. We can master it only if we face it together. And that, my friends, is why we have the United Nations." — Kofi Annan (former UN Secretary-General)

The United Nations was formed just after the aftermath of the Second World War in 1945. The institution was formed to maintain international peace and security, foster cooperation among nations, and promote human rights. It served as a successor to the defunct League of Nations. Its structure consists of six principal organs: the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and the Secretariat. It's worth noting that the United Nations is not a government for governments, but an organization. And it's effectiveness is largely based on the political will and contributions of its member states.

Formation:

The need for an international organization to replace the League of Nations was first stated officially on October 30, 1943, in the Moscow Declaration issued by China, Great Britain, the United States, and the USSR. At the Dumbarton Oaks Conference in 1944, those four countries drafted specific proposals for a Charter for the new organization. Later, at the Yalta Conference in February of 1945, further agreement was reached on the framework and structure of the organization.

Later that year, representatives of 50 nations attended the founding conference in San Francisco (USA), where they drafted and later signed the UN Charter. The required number of nations ratified the Charter on October 24, 1945 (officially United Nations Day). The "Big Three" (the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union [USSR] played a key role in designing the new organization and determining its decision-making structure and functions.

Initially, the 'Big Three' states and their respective leaders (Roosevelt, Churchill, and Joseph Stalin) were hindered by disagreements on issues that foreshadowed the Cold War. The Soviet Union demanded individual membership and voting rights for its constituent republics, and Britain wanted assurances that its colonies would not be placed under UN control. There was also disagreement over the voting system to be adopted in the Security Council, an issue that became famous as 'the Veto Problem'.

Structure:

The General Assembly (GA):

The GA is the main organ of the UN. It is composed of all representatives of all member states. Each member state has one vote. The UN General Assembly (UNGA) is the main policy-making organ of the organization. It provides a unique forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the Charter of the United Nations. The total member states are 193, and as earlier said, each has just one vote.

The UNGA also makes key decisions for the UN including:

- Appointing the Secretary-General on the recommendation of the Security Council  

- Electing the non-permanent members of the Security Council  

- Approving the UN budget

The Assembly meets in regular sessions from September to December each year, and thereafter as required. It discusses specific issues through dedicated agenda items or sub-items, which lead to the adoption of resolutions. Also, sitting arrangements in the General Assembly Hall change for each session.

Security Council (SC):

The UN Security Council consists of the five victors from World War II, known as "the Big Five," as permanent members – China, France, the United Kingdom, the USSR (now Russia), and the United States, and 10 other countries elected by the General Assembly that serve two-year terms. The Security Council is the principal UN organ responsible for ensuring peace, and its decisions are binding on all member states.

The Security Council has primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. Although each of the 15 members has one vote, a veto power is attributed to each of the Big Five. This gives special powers to the each of the Big Five, as it can be used to override decisions that had been agreed by the Security Council. This is one of the limitations of the United Nations.

The Security Council takes the lead in determining the existence of a threat to peace or act of aggression. It calls upon parties to a dispute to settle it by peaceful means and recommends methods of adjustment or terms of settlement. In some cases, the Security Council can resort to imposing sanctions or even authorize the use of force to maintain or restore international peace and security.

Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC): The Economic and Social Council, usually referred to by the acronym ECOSOC, provides a central forum for discussing the world’s economic, social, and environmental challenges and for formulating policy recommendations to address them. It coordinates about 70% of the UN’s human and financial resources including those of the 15 specialized agencies, and five functional commissions under its jurisdiction.

ECOSOC is comprised of 54 UN member states which are elected by the General Assembly to serve overlapping three-year terms. Seats are allocated among five regions in order to ensure equitable geographical representation.

The Trusteeship Council:

The Trusteeship Council was established to oversee eleven “trust territories” established under the UN Charter. These included former colonies previously administered under mandates issued by the League of Nations, as well as territories seized from nations that were defeated in World War II. The Council suspended its operation in 1994 when Palau, the last remaining trust territory, gained its independence.

The aims of the Trusteeship System were to promote the advancement of the inhabitants of Trust Territories and their progressive development towards self-government or independence; and these aims have been fulfilled to the extent that all Trust Territories have attained self-government, either as separate States or by joining neighboring independent countries.

International Court of Justice (ICJ):

The International Court of Justice, also known as the World Court, is the UN’s principal judicial organ. It is located in the Peace Palace, in The Hague, a city in the Netherlands, making it the only one of the UN’s principal organs that is not based in New York City. The Court adjudicates interstate disputes in contentious cases in accordance with international law and issues advisory opinions on questions of law referred to it by authorized UN organs.

The Court is composed of 15 judges elected by both the General Assembly and the Security Council to serve nine-year terms. No two judges from the same jurisdiction may serve simultaneously. Seats are informally apportioned geographically to ensure that judges from all of the world’s main legal systems are represented on the court.⁷

The UN Secretariat: 

The United Nations Secretariat carries out the day-to-day work of the UN as mandated by the General Assembly. The Secretary-General is the head of the Secretariat, which has tens of thousands of UN staff members working at duty stations all over the world. UN staff members are recruited internationally and locally and work in duty stations and on peacekeeping missions. Serving the cause of peace in a violent world is a dangerous occupation. Since the founding of the United Nations, hundreds of brave men and women have given their lives in its service. The UN reports that about 4,300 service men and women have lost their lives in active service.

The Secretariat is organized along departmental lines, with each department or office having a distinct area of action and responsibility. Offices and departments coordinate with each other to ensure cohesion in the UN’s programme of work. Much of the UN Secretariat is located in New York City, USA. The UN also has three major offices outside of its HQ Headquarters and five Regional Economic Commissions.

193 member states

2 observing states (Holy See, and Palestine)

17 non governing territories