Security Council

The Security Council has a primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security.

Security Council

The Security Council has a primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security.

  1. Feb 2017

The 15 member body has five permanent members (China, France, Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States), and ten non-permament members, elected by the General Assembly for two-year terms.

Each country holds the Presidency of the Council for one month, alternating in an alphabetical order.

The veto power
Each Council member has one vote. Decisions on procedural matters are made by an affirmative vote of at least nine of the 15 members. Decisions on substantive matters require nine votes, including the concurring votes of all five permanent members. This is the rule of “great Power unanimity”, often referred to as the “veto” power.

Under the Charter, all Members of the United Nations agree to accept and carry out the decisions of the Security Council. While other organs of the United Nations make recommendations to Governments, the Council alone has the power to make decisions which Member States are obligated to carry out.

Working Methods
When a complaint concerning a threat to peace is brought before it, the Council’s first action is usually to recommend to the parties to try to reach agreement by peaceful means. In some cases, the Council itself undertakes investigation and mediation. It may appoint special representatives or request the Secretary-General to do so. It  may set forth principles for a peaceful settlement.

When a dispute leads to fighting, the Council’s first concern is to bring it to an end as soon as possible. On many occasions, the Council has issued cease-fire directives which have been instrumental in preventing wider hostilities.

It also sends United Nations peacekeeping forces to help reduce tensions in troubled areas, keep opposing forces apart and create conditions of calm in which peaceful settlements may be sought. The Council may decide on enforcement measures, economic sanctions (such as trade embargoes) or collective military action.

Non-Members Participation
A State which is a Member of the United Nations but not of the Security Council may participate, without a vote, in its discussions when the Council considers that that country’s interests are affected.

Both Members of the United Nations and non-members, if they are parties to a dispute being considered by the Council, are invited to take part, without a vote, in the Council’s discussions; the Council sets the conditions for participation by a non-member state.

 

 

 

The General Assembly

Established in 1945 under the Charter of the United Nations, the General Assembly occupies a central position as the chief deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the United Nations.

The General Assembly

Established in 1945 under the Charter of the United Nations, the General Assembly occupies a central position as the chief deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the United Nations.

Comprising all 193 Members of the United Nations, it provides a unique forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the Charter.

Each Member State has one vote. Decisions on key issues such as international peace and security, admitting new members and the UN budget are decided by two-thirds majority. Other matters are decided by simple majority.

While the decisions of the Assembly have no legally binding force for Governments, they carry the weight of world opinion on major international issues, as well as the moral authority of the world community.

Many issues are also addressed by international conferences called for by the Assembly; and by the Secretariat of the United Nations – the Secretary-General and his staff of international civil servants.

The Main Committees
The work of the United Nations year-round derives largely from the decisions of the General Assembly – that is to say, the will of the majority of the Members as expressed in resolutions adopted by the Assembly. Much of this work is carried out in six main committees established by the Assembly to study and report on specific issues.

The General Assembly’s regular session begins each year on the third Tuesday in September and continues usually until the third week of December. In recent years, the Assembly has been in session throughout the year. At the start of each regular session, the Assembly elects a new president,  21 Vice-Presidents and the Chairmen of the Main Committees.

The Assembly also holds a general debate, a high level segment of the GA, in which Member States express their views on a wide range of matters of international concern.

To ensure equitable geographical representation, the presidency of the Assembly rotates each year among five groups of States: African, Asian, Eastern European, Latin American and Caribbean, and Western European and other States.

 

 

 

The Economic and Social Council

The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is the principal organ to coordinate economic, social, and related work of the 14 UN specialized agencies, functional commissions and five regional commissions.

 

The Economic and Social Council

The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is the principal organ to coordinate economic, social, and related work of the 14 UN specialized agencies, functional commissions and five regional commissions.

The Economic and Social Council has 54 members, elected for three-year terms by the General Assembly. Voting in the Council is by simple majority; each member has one vote.

The Economic and Social Council generally holds one five-to-six-week long substantive session each year, alternating between New York and Geneva, and one organizational session in New York.

The substantive session includes a high-level special meeting, attended by Ministers and other high officials, to discuss major economic and social issues.

ECOSOC:

  • serves as the central forum for the discussion of international economic and social issues of a global or inter-disciplinary nature and the formulation of policy recommendations on those issues addressed to Member States and to the United Nations system;
  • makes and initiates studies and reports and make recommendations on international economic, social, cultural, educational, health and related matters;
  • promotes respect for, and observance of, human rights and fundamental freedoms;
  • calls international conferences and prepares draft conventions for submission to the General Assembly on matters falling within its competence;
  • negotiates agreements with the specialized agencies defining their relationship with the United Nations;
  • coordinates the activities of the specialized agencies by means of consultations with and recommendations to them and by means of recommendations to the General Assembly and the Members of the United Nations;
  • performs services, approved by the Assembly, for Members of the United Nations and, on request, for the specialized agencies;
  • consults with non-governmental organizations concerned with matters with which the Council deals.

The year-round work of the Council is carried out in its subsidiary bodies – commissions and committees – which meet at regular intervals and report back to the Council. Under the Charter, the Economic and Social Council may consult with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) concerned with matters within the Council’s competence.

The Council recognizes that these organizations should have the opportunity to express their views, and that they possess special experience or technical knowledge of value to the Council’s work.

Over 3000 non-governmental organizations have consultative status with the Council. NGOs with consultative status may send observers to public meetings of the Council and its subsidiary bodies and may submit written statements relevant to the Council’s work. They may also consult with the United Nations Secretariat on matters of mutual concern.

 

 

The International Court of Justice

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.

 

The International Court of Justice

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.

The Court was established in June 1945 by the Charter of the United Nations and began work in April 1946. The seat of the Court is at the Peace Palace in The Hague (Netherlands).

The Court’s role is to settle, in accordance with international law, legal disputes submitted to it by States and to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by authorized United Nations organs and specialized agencies.

The Court is composed of 15 judges, who are elected for terms of office of nine years by the United Nations General Assembly and the Security Council. It is assisted by a Registry, its administrative organ.