$ 0The United Nations (UN) is an international organization founded in 1945. It is currently made up of 193 Member States. Due to the powers vested in its Charter and its unique international character, the United Nations can take action on the issues confronting humanity in the 21st century, such as peace and security, climate change, sustainable development, human rights, disarmament, terrorism, humanitarian and health emergencies, gender equality, governance, food production, and more.
The UN also provides a forum for its members to express their views in its bodies and committees. By enabling dialogue between its members, and by hosting negotiations, the UN has become a mechanism for governments to find agreements and solve problems together.
The overarching framework of the United Nations incorporates five principal organs, but a vast array of underlying specialized agencies, programs, funds, and related organizations maintain ties with the UN while operating under differing levels of independence. The five principal organs of the UN operate as the political base of the United Nation:
1. General Assembly:
The General Assembly (GA), which is made up of the 193 member states, is the main deliberative body of the UN that meets annually in New York. In the plenary sessions of the GA, the member states address issues of international concern and debate resolutions. These resolutions hold no legally binding authority, but since each member-state gets one vote, GA resolutions represent the beliefs of the international community and are often considered “soft” law. The GA is composed of different committees (e.g. Disarmament and International Security Committee; Economic and Financial Committee; Legal Committee; etc).
2. Security Council:
The Security Council has the “primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security.” As such, the Security Council is the only UN body that can pass resolutions and it is also the only part of the UN that can authorize the use of force. The Security Council has 15 members, including five permanent members (China, France, Russia, the U.K., and the U.S.), and ten non-permanent members selected on a regional basis by the GA. The five permanent members can veto any substantive issue. The Security Council has previously established peacekeeping operations, international tribunals, and sanctions.
3. Economic and Social Council:
The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is composed of 54 member-states elected by the GA according to fair regional representation standards. As its name suggests, ECOSOC is charged with making reports and recommendations in the fields of “economic, social, cultural, educational, health and other related matters.” As such, ECOSOC oversees the work of 14 UN Specialized Agencies and 14 specialized commissions, which deal with issues such as drugs, crime prevention, and the status of women.
4. Secretariat:
The Secretariat, headed by the Secretary-General, offers administrative and substantive support to all of the programs of the UN, ranging from translation services to preparing studies on any topic the UN considers. Individuals working within the Secretariat are international civil servants, meaning that they pledge they will not follow the orders of their home state, but will instead work for the good of the international community.
5. International Court of Justice:
The International Court of Justice (ICJ), as the principal judicial organ of the UN, resolves disputes among States and gives advisory opinions to the UN. Judges of fifteen different nationalities make up the body of the ICJ, which meets in The Hague. In its 68 years of existence, the ICJ has been presented with about 200 cases, including both contentious, i.e., between states, such as the legality of U.S. involvement in Nicaragua, and advisory, i.e., on questions from the UN and its agencies.