THE United Nations

The United Nations (UN) is an international organization established in 1945 to replace the League of Nations. Its purpose is to facilitate the enforcement of international law, security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and the achievement of world peace.

Key Information:

• Headquarters and Offices: The main headquarters are in New York City, with further main offices in Geneva, Nairobi, and Vienna.

• Members: The UN has 193 member countries today.

• Founding: The name "United Nations" was coined by U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The UN officially began on October 24, 1945, after the Charter was ratified by the five permanent members of the Security Council.

• Charter: The UN Charter, signed on June 26, 1945, in San Francisco, is the foundational treaty and contains 19 chapters and 111 articles.

• Objectives: The UN aims to maintain international peace and security, settle disputes peacefully, develop friendly relations among nations, solve economic, social, cultural, and humanitarian problems, and promote respect for human rights and support freedom.

Structure of the UN: The UN Charter established six principal organs:

• The General Assembly (UNGA)

• The Security Council (UNSC)

• The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)

• The Secretariat

• The International Court of Justice (ICJ)

• The United Nations Trusteeship Council (currently suspended operation)

Key Organs Details:

• Security Council: Charged with maintaining international peace and security. It has 15 members: five veto-wielding permanent members (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) and 10 elected non-permanent members serving two-year terms.

• General Assembly: The only organ where all member nations have equal representation. It approves the budget and elects the ten non-permanent members of the Security Council.

• Languages: The six official languages are Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish. The Secretariat uses English and French as working languages.

Funding and Peacekeeping:

• The UN is financed by assessed and voluntary contributions. The USA donates the highest percentage of the total funds (22%).

• Peacekeeping forces, known as the Blue Helmets, are voluntarily provided by member states. The peacekeeping force received the Nobel Prize in 1988.

India's Involvement: India joined the UN in October 1945, has been selected seven times as a Security Council member, and regularly contributes to peacekeeping and the UN Budget. Vijay Laksmi Pandit was the first woman president of the General Assembly.