UN General Assembly. What is the UN General Assembly? UN General Assembly and international security

one of the main organs of the UN. Consists of all members of the UN. Each UN member state has no more than 5 representatives in the UN General Assembly. It has the authority to consider any issues within the framework of the UN Charter, as well as make recommendations on them to member states and the UN Security Council. Has: 7 main committees - on political and security issues, on disarmament and international security issues, on economic and financial issues, etc.; 2 standing committees - Advisory on Administrative and Budgetary Issues and the Committee on Contributions. It is common practice to establish special committees and commissions (for example, the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, the Commission international law and etc.). There are special bodies of the UN General Assembly with the rights of autonomous international organizations, for example, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Regular sessions of the UN General Assembly are convened annually, and emergency and special sessions are held if necessary. UN Declarations and Conventions. Unlike the UN Charter, UN conventions are not binding on members of the organization. This or that country can either ratify this or that treaty or not. The most famous UN conventions and declarations: Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948); Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (1948); International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966); Non-Proliferation Treaty nuclear weapons, approved and opened for signature (1968); Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989); UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992), entered into force and was ratified by Russia in 1994); Kyoto Protocol (1997), opened for signature in 1998, ratified by Russia in 2004; Millennium Declaration (2000). UN declarations take the form of calls and recommendations and are not essentially treaties.

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UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

one of the main organs of the United Nations, created in accordance with the UN Charter adopted in 1945 in San Francisco. General Assembly consists of all members of the organization and is the most representative body of the UN. The UN General Assembly is a regularly operating forum, which is a kind of global center of political and diplomatic activity, in which politicians of the highest level (heads of state, government, foreign ministers of UN member countries, heads of various intergovernmental and non-governmental institutions operating in the United Nations) take part. global and regional levels). The political and legal weight of resolutions adopted by the UN General Assembly lies in the fact that they are a reflection of either already established customary international standards, either by expressing a unanimous interpretation of the principles of the UN Charter, or by reproducing certain rules of international law. The General Assembly has broad powers in matters of maintaining peace and security. It is called upon to discuss any questions or matters within the limits of the UN Charter or relating to the powers and functions of any of the organs provided for in the Charter, and, with certain exceptions, to make recommendations to the members of the UN and the Security Council on any such questions or matters. At the same time, in matters of maintaining peace and security, the UN Charter clearly distinguishes the functions of the General Assembly and the Security Council: the General Assembly is primarily a body of discussion, while the Security Council is a body of action. The UN Charter specifies that any matter on which action needs to be taken is referred by the General Assembly to the Security Council before or after discussion. But the competence of the UN General Assembly is not limited to the fact that it can discuss and consider certain issues. She is given the right to draw the attention of the Security Council to problems that could threaten international peace and security. In accordance with the UN Charter general rule decisions of the General Assembly are advisory, but not legally binding for UN members. In questions inner life decisions taken by the General Assembly in compliance with all procedures of the UN Charter are binding.

The UN General Assembly - GA (General Assembly of the UN) is the main deliberative body of the UN and consists of representatives of all UN member states. It is authorized to discuss any issues within the framework of the UN Charter or relating to the powers and functions of any of the UN bodies and make appropriate recommendations. The decisions of the Assembly, although they do not have binding legal force for the governments of the participating countries, play an important role because they express the opinion of the world community. The General Assembly determines the UN policy and its program, approves the budget, convenes and organizes conferences, develops main directions of activity and conducts various campaigns.

The General Assembly was intended to be a forum in which the nations of the world should be given ample opportunity "to discuss any question or matter within the limits of the Charter." This is the largest and most representative, but not the most powerful body of the UN, since the Assembly does not have the power to enforce its decisions. Resolutions adopted by the Assembly, unlike decisions of the Security Council, are non-binding, and no nation can veto them.

The General Assembly controls the activities of the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, and special institutions; she also has key electoral responsibilities. Together with the Security Council, the Assembly elects the Secretary General and the judges of the International Court of Justice; it also makes decisions on admitting new members to the UN. The Assembly elects ten non-permanent members. Finally, it determines the contribution of each UN member state to the Organization's budget.

In accordance with the Charter, the functions and powers of the General Assembly are limited to:

Review and formulate principles for cooperation in maintaining international peace and security, including principles in the field of disarmament and arms regulation;

Discuss any matter relating to international peace and security, except when the dispute or situation is before the Security Council;

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To discuss and, with the same exception, to make recommendations on any matter within the limits of the Charter or on matters relating to the powers and functions of any organ of the United Nations;

Conduct research and prepare recommendations in order to promote international political cooperation, the development of international law, and the implementation of human rights and fundamental freedoms; promote international cooperation in the economic, social fields, in the field of culture, education and health care;

Receive and consider reports of the Security Council and other United Nations bodies;

Review and approve the budget of the United Nations and determine the contributions of individual members;

Elect non-permanent members of the Security Council, members
Economic and Social Council and elected members
new Guardianship Council; participate together with the Security Council in
election of judges of the International Court and, on the recommendation of the Council
Security, appoint a Secretary General.

Decisions at the General Assembly are mainly taken by a simple majority of votes. However, those resolutions that, in accordance with the Charter, relate to key issues (peacekeeping resolutions and the election of new members) must be adopted by a two-thirds majority.

A regular session of the General Assembly meets annually in September, but in addition, the Assembly may meet in special sessions at the request of the Security Council, a majority of the members of the United Nations, or one member of the Organization with the consent of a majority of the others. Emergency special sessions may be convened within 24 hours of a request from the Security Council, approved by any nine members of the Council, or at the request of a majority of the members of the United Nations.

At the beginning of each regular session, the Assembly holds a general debate, where heads of state and government often speak. During them, member states express their opinions on a wide range of international issues.

Most issues are discussed in its six main committees:

First Committee(issues of disarmament and international security);

2.1. UN structure. Major organs 47

Second Committee(economic and financial issues);

Third Committee(social, humanitarian and cultural issues);

Fourth Committee(special political issues and decolonization issues);

Fifth Committee(administrative and budgetary issues);

Sixth Committee(legal issues).

The role and importance of GA in the development of the world community is evidenced by the following facts.

The “Uniting for Peace” resolution adopted in 1950 significantly increased the role of the General Assembly. This resolution asserted the right of the Assembly to meet immediately in case of emergency when the Security Council could not act, and to propose appropriate collective measures, including the use of armed forces. The resolution established a Military Truce Commission consisting of 14 representatives of various states to monitor developments dangerous situations in any part of the world and called on all UN member states to create special contingents of armed forces intended for use at the request of the Security Council or the General Assembly. Having expanded its powers, the Assembly was able to keep several crisis situations under control: the Chinese military invasion of Korea in 1950, the Suez crisis of 1956 and the Soviet invasion of Hungary in the same year, the Lebanon crisis of 1958, the Congo crisis in 1960 As decolonization led to the expansion of the political base of the Assembly, security issues began to be dealt with primarily by the Security Council.

The United States, as a rule, managed to achieve a majority in the General Assembly when voting on vital issues. important issues. In the 1960s - 1970s. Due to the strengthening of the Afro-Asian-Arab bloc, it became more difficult for the United States to achieve the required majority, so it had to increase political, economic and diplomatic pressure on third world countries.

The decisions of the Assembly, like those of the Security Council, to a certain extent reflect the balance of forces that has developed outside the UN. Even the political principle “one state, one vote” adopted at the Assembly is not able to overcome the inequalities in the representation of the political, military and economic interests of different countries. Achieving a lasting majority was often facilitated by behind-the-scenes lobbying, sometimes taking the form of bribes and threats.

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The General Assembly has many achievements, but there are also outright failures. In 1956, she managed to restore the status quo in the Middle East after the Suez crisis and, during its resolution, created a new effective instrument for maintaining peace - the UN Emergency Force. However, the GA was unable to undertake effective action to stop the Soviet invasion of Hungary in 1956 and Czechoslovakia in 1968. It also failed to influence the course of the Vietnam War; In the Middle East, even the pro-Arab attitude of the Assembly after the 1967 war did not facilitate negotiations between Israel and neighboring states.

However, the activities of the Assembly were not limited to discussions. Thus, in the field of international law, under the auspices of the General Assembly, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was established. In 1948, the Assembly's significant contributions were the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Genocide Convention. The General Assembly also adopted three extremely important arms control agreements: in 1966, the Treaty on outer space, in 1968 the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and in 1971 the Treaty on the Use of the Seabed. In 1974, she initiated the organization of the United Nations University (UNU), headquartered in Tokyo, and established its regional branches around the world. The emergence of an Afro-Asian-Arab bloc called the Group of 77, in which mostly non-aligned countries predominated, caused the United States to question the usefulness of the Assembly's political principle of "one state, one vote." The question was: should a global superpower make decisions of a body in which states representing tiny countries, sometimes with illiterate populations, undeveloped economies and ineffective armies, have equal rights? The United States, which was ordered to contribute 2.5% to the UN budget, was increasingly irritated by the fact that a country whose contributions to the budget of this organization was less than 0.1% had the same right to vote. Therefore, the Americans began to put forward informal proposals regarding the introduction of “weighted voting”, taking into account the real political force of one state or another. But all these proposals rested on the impossibility of defining criteria for political weight. Therefore, the principle of “one state, one vote” was preserved, despite the danger that the superpowers would ignore the Assembly, acting either outside the UN framework or only through the Security Council.

Within the structure of the General Assembly, four committees deal with economic aspects, each of which resolves issues from

2.1. UN structure. Major organs 49

falling within its competence and is responsible to the General Assembly.

1. Committee on Economic and Financial Affairs (Economic
and Financial - Second Committee).

2. UN Commission on Law international trade -
UNCITRAL (UN Commission on International Trade Law -
INCITRAL).

3. International Law Commission - ILC (International Law Commission - ILC).

4. Investment Committee.

Within these committees, recommendations are prepared and resolutions are developed for submission to the plenary sessions of the General Assembly. Any UN member has the right to be represented on each of the committees. Each committee elects its own chairman. Decisions are made by a majority vote of the members present and voting.

UN Security Council

The UN Security Council - SC (Council of Safety of the UN) is the current political body of the UN, which, according to the UN Charter, is responsible for maintaining international peace and security. The Council is vested with broad powers in the peaceful settlement of international disputes, preventing military clashes between states, suppressing acts of aggression and restoring international peace.

Based on the Charter, only the UN Security Council has the right to make decisions on the conduct of operations using the UN Armed Forces, as well as to resolve issues related to the creation and use of the UN Armed Forces, in particular, such as determining the tasks and functions of the armed forces, their composition and number, command structure, duration of stay in areas of operations, as well as issues of management of operations and determination of the procedure for their financing. To put pressure on a state whose actions pose a threat to international peace or constitute a violation of peace, the Council may decide and require UN members to take measures not related to the use of armed forces, such as, for example, a complete or partial interruption of economic relations, railway, sea, air, postal, telegraph, radio and other means of communication, as well as severance of diplomatic relations. If such measures are considered insufficient by the Council, it is authorized to take action related to the use

50 Chapter 2. International economic organizations in the UN system

air, sea and ground forces. These actions may include demonstrations, blockades, and operations by the armed forces of UN members.

The Council makes recommendations on the admission of states to membership of the UN, on the expulsion of UN members who systematically violate the principles of the UN Charter, on the suspension of the exercise of rights and privileges belonging to a UN member if it takes preventive or enforcement actions against this member.

The Council makes recommendations to the UN General Assembly regarding the appointment of the UN Secretary-General, elects together with it the members of the International Court of Justice and can take measures to enforce a decision of this Court that a particular state has refused to comply with. According to the Charter, the Council can, in addition to recommendations, make legally binding decisions, the implementation of which is ensured by the coercive force of all UN member states. During the entire existence of the UN, there was practically no important international event threatening the peace and security of peoples or causing disputes and disagreements between states that would not be brought to the attention of the Council, and significant number they became the subject of consideration at meetings of the Security Council.

The Security Council consists of five permanent members - Great Britain, China, Russia (de facto successor to the USSR), the USA and France - and ten members elected by the General Assembly for a two-year term, re-election is not allowed. Non-permanent members are elected from the following regions: five from Africa and Asia, one from of Eastern Europe, two of Latin America and two from Western Europe, as well as other regions, including Australia and Canada (Table 2.1). The Security Council is organized so that it can function continuously, and a representative of each of its members must be permanently located at UN headquarters. The chairmanship of the Council is granted to each member for one month, with rotation of chairmen taking place in accordance with the arrangement of their names in the English alphabet.

A minimum of nine votes are required to make decisions, including the concurring votes of all permanent members. This means that all it takes is one or more permanent members to vote against a decision and it is considered rejected. In this case, they speak of a veto by a permanent member. Abstinence by a permanent member is not considered a veto.

2.1. UN structure. Major organs

Table 2.1. Members of the Security Council in 2004

The General Assembly is the main deliberative body of the UN. It was intended as a forum in which the nations of the world could “discuss any question or matter within the limits of the Charter.” The General Assembly is composed of representatives of all member states, each of which has one vote.

Basically, the General Assembly adopts its resolutions and decisions by a majority vote of the member states present. Decisions on major issues are made by a two-thirds vote. Decisions on other issues are made by a simple majority of votes. Voting may be conducted by recorded vote, show of hands, or roll call. No nation can veto decisions of the General Assembly.

Functions and powers

The UN General Assembly exercises broad powers: from monitoring the activities of the Economic and Social Council and the Trusteeship Council to key electoral responsibilities. In accordance with the Charter, the General Assembly has the following functions and powers:

• consider the principles of cooperation in the maintenance of international peace and security, including the principles governing disarmament and arms regulation, and make recommendations regarding these principles;
• discuss any questions relating to international peace and security and make recommendations thereon, except when the dispute or situation is before the Security Council;
• discuss and, with the same exception, make recommendations on any matter within the limits of the Charter or on matters relating to the powers and functions of any organ of the United Nations;
• organize studies and formulate recommendations for the promotion of international cooperation in the political field, the development and codification of international law, the implementation of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, and the promotion of international cooperation in the economic, social, cultural, educational and health fields;
• to recommend measures for the peaceful settlement of any situation, regardless of its origin, in the event that it may harm friendly relations between nations;
• receive and consider reports of the Security Council and other United Nations bodies;
• review and approve the budget of the United Nations and determine the contributions of individual members;
• elect non-permanent members of the Security Council, members of the Economic and Social Council and elected members of the Trusteeship Council (if necessary), and also, jointly with the Security Council, participate in the election of judges of the International Court and, on the recommendation of the Security Council, appoint the Secretary-General.
• 2.6. Structure of the Session Organization

The Assembly holds regular sessions annually. They usually open in September. Beginning with the 58th regular session (2003), the General Assembly opens on the third Tuesday in September, counting from the first week in which there is at least one working day. Typically, a session lasts about three months.

Before the start of the regular session, elections are held for the Chairman of the General Assembly, as well as 21 Vice-Chairmen and Chairmen of the six main committees of the Assembly. Each UN member state has the right to be represented on any of these committees. The Chairman of the Assembly directs its work through the General Committee. To ensure fair geographical representation, the presidency of the General Assembly is alternately occupied by representatives of five groups of states: Asian, African, Eastern European, Western European, Latin American and Caribbean.

In addition to regular sessions, the Assembly may hold special sessions at the request of the Security Council, a majority of members of the United Nations, or one member of the Organization with the consent of a majority of other members. Under the terms of the already mentioned “Uniting for Peace” resolution, in the event of a threat to peace, emergency special sessions can be convened within 24 hours of the receipt of a request from the Security Council, adopted by the votes of any nine members of the Council, or at the request of a majority of the members of the United Nations, or by the demand of one member with the consent of the majority of the others.

At the beginning of each regular session, the General Assembly holds general plenary sessions, at which heads of state and government speak. Some issues are dealt with directly at these meetings, others are referred to one of the six main committees:

• The First Committee deals with issues of disarmament and international security;
• Second Committee - economic and financial issues;
• Third Committee - social and humanitarian issues, as well as cultural issues;
• Fourth Committee - Special Political Affairs and Decolonization Issues;
• Fifth Committee - administrative and budgetary issues;
• The Sixth Committee deals with legal issues.

Resolutions and decisions, including those based on committee recommendations, are adopted in plenary sessions, usually towards the end of the regular session in December. They can be adopted either by voting or without it.

Despite the fact that the General Assembly is the largest and most representative body of the UN, it is not the most powerful body, since resolutions adopted by the Assembly, unlike decisions of the Security Council, do not have binding legal force for governments. At the same time, behind the decisions of the General Assembly are world public opinion on important international issues, as well as the moral authority of the world community.

• Based on the "Uniting for Peace" resolution adopted by the General Assembly in November 1950, the Assembly may take action in the event of a threat to the peace, a breach of the peace or an act of aggression if the Security Council is unable to act in this direction due to lack of unity among its members. permanent members. The Assembly is authorized to immediately consider this matter in order to propose recommendations to Member States on collective measures, including, in the event of a breach of the peace or an act of aggression, the use of armed forces, if necessary, to maintain or restore international peace and security. 40 Global economic regulation
• Ms. Haya Rashed Al-Khalifa (Bahrain) was elected President of the 61st session of the General Assembly (2006). During this time, she served as legal adviser to the Royal Court in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

History of the UN in facts and legends

“We, the peoples of the United Nations, are determined to save future generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold grief to humanity.”

With these words begins the Charter of the United Nations - a structure whose creation is called one of the main results of the Second World War.

Initially, the prevention of global international conflicts is the main task of the UN. Its headquarters has more than once become the scene of the most fierce verbal battles and scandalous actions in order to preserve peace and save human lives.

The history of the UN in facts and legends told by diplomats - in a TASS special project.

TEN FACTS ABOUT THE UN

Born of War

The idea of ​​creating the UN arose at the very beginning of World War II. On August 14, 1941, on board a warship in the Atlantic Ocean near the island. Newfoundland (Canada) US President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill signed the Atlantic Charter - a document declaring the goals of the two countries in the war against Nazi Germany and its allies, as well as their vision post-war structure peace. On September 24, 1941, the USSR joined this declaration.

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On January 1, 1942, representatives of 26 allied states that fought against the countries of Hitler's coalition declared support for the Atlantic Charter by signing the Declaration of the United Nations. This document was the first official use of the name "United Nations", proposed by President Roosevelt.

The idea of ​​education new organization Everyone supported it, but there were disagreements regarding its structure, tasks and powers.

As a result, at the Moscow conference of the foreign ministers of the USSR, USA and Great Britain (Vyacheslav Molotov, Cordell Hull and Anthony Eden) at the end of October 1943, the first document on the creation international organization in possible short time. The meeting was also attended by the Chinese Ambassador to Moscow Fu Bing-chang.

To get to the conference, US Secretary of State Cordell Hull took the first flight of his life, and upon returning from Moscow, President Roosevelt personally met him at the airport.

Declaration of January 1, 1942, in which the name "United Nations" was first mentioned, proposed by US President Franklin Roosevelt

The UN Charter and the suspicious Truman

The final agreement on the creation of the UN was reached in 1945 in Yalta during a meeting of the leaders of the three countries of the anti-Hitler coalition - Joseph Stalin, Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill.

It was agreed that the UN's activities would be based on the principle of unanimity of the great powers - permanent members of the Security Council with the right of veto.

However, problems and disagreements between the powers that conceived the UN began even before the adoption of the organization's Charter. The US position underwent major changes after the death of President Roosevelt. His replacement Harry Truman treated the USSR with great suspicion.

Truman did not like the agreements reached at Yalta on the principle of unanimity of the great powers in the Security Council, as well as the possibility of using the veto. According to the balance of power that had formed at that time in the future international organization, the United States had an absolute majority of votes in the Security Council and the General Assembly. One thing stood in the way - the right of veto, which Moscow received along with the other members of the UN Security Council. Truman hoped to change the situation at the conference in San Francisco, where the UN Charter was to be discussed.

Information from the American Ambassador in Moscow Averell Harriman added fuel to the fire of hostility towards the communist regime.

From Averell Harriman's dispatch

More than a million blue helmets

UN peacekeeping activities began in 1948 with the establishment of a body to monitor the implementation of truce conditions in the Middle East.

The first UN emergency force, consisting of 10 countries, was created in 1956 to oversee the withdrawal of foreign troops from the zone Suez Canal(Egypt). At the same time, blue berets and helmets were used for the first time, which became a symbol of peacekeepers.

Since 1948, the UN has initiated 71 peacekeeping operations. More than a million military, police and civilian personnel served in its ranks. More than 3.3 thousand peacekeepers died.

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People don't appreciate the things that the UN has achieved. The possibility of interstate conflict has greatly decreased over the 70 years of the UN's existence. Yes, we have wars and very disgusting events. Was Korean War, the conflict in Vietnam, the confrontation between India and Pakistan, there were wars in the 70s in South Asia, wars in Africa. But great war did not happen, and we must admit that part of this credit lies with the UN

Sir Jeremy Greenstock, former UK permanent representative to the UN (1998-2003), head of the UN Association in the United Kingdom

Six UN Nobels

In 2001, the UN received the Nobel Peace Prize, although before that certain areas of its activities had been awarded such an award, and even more than once.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees was awarded the prize twice - in 1954 and 1981.

United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) - in 1965.

UN International Peacekeeping Force - in 1988.

In 1961 Nobel Prize peace was posthumously awarded general secretary UN Dag Hammerskjöld (Sweden).

RECORDS, SCANDALS AND LEGENDS

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The UN tribune - and there is no higher tribune in the world yet - gave states the opportunity to express their point of view on events in international life and thereby ease the tension in their relations. This allowed public opinion V various countries compare the positions of the main warring parties. As a result of such a comparison, one or another power was subjected to a certain international pressure, which it could not ignore. This happened during the Vietnam War, this happened during the war in Afghanistan, and this happened in some other cases. And finally, there were still international conflicts, albeit not the most pressing ones that could be resolved directly at the UN

Oleg Troyanovsky, permanent representative of the USSR to the UN (1976-1986)

The sessions of the UN General Assembly, which open annually at the end of September, are always the most eventful and vibrant diplomatic event of the year. Hundreds of meetings and speeches take place within the framework of the forum. Of interest are those in which the participants are “bosom enemies” - how they will behave when they are in the same room and listening to their opponents. Speeches by country leaders and high-ranking diplomats are often accompanied by scandals and extravagant acts.

The record holder among heads of state for the length of speech from the rostrum of the General Assembly is still the Cuban leader Fidel Castro. In 1960, he spoke for 4 hours and 29 minutes, which became the reason for getting into the Guinness Book of Records.

Sometimes politicians speaking from the UN rostrum felt ill. And Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, during his last speech at the UN in September 2009, he made the interpreter faint.

He spoke for almost two hours instead of the 15 minutes allotted by the regulations. In such a long speech, the Libyan leader managed to touch on many world problems, including criticizing the UN. In particular, he stated the need to move the organization's headquarters from the United States to another country.

Muammar Gaddafi, head of Libya

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Why are you going to America, where you are all suffering from the change of time? Look at you - you're all tired from the long flight across the Atlantic. It is necessary to find another country for the UN headquarters, where, when they arrive at the UN General Assembly, people will not be so tired... Why are you striving for America? What is this - the Vatican, Jerusalem or Mecca?

Muammar Gaddafi, head of Libya

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One of the most mysterious moments that occurred during the sessions of the General Assembly is the story of Nikita Khrushchev’s shoe. According to one version, the shoe fell off Khrushchev’s foot in the crowd on the way to the meeting, and it was brought to him after the speeches had begun. Some claim that Khrushchev held the shoe in his hand during the meeting, others note that the shoe was lying nearby on the table. But one way or another, during the speech of the Filipino delegate, who talked about the threat of Soviet imperialism, Khrushchev jumped up and began waving his arms to attract the attention of the chairman of the session, and also banged on the table in protest. The shoe just happened to be at hand. Rumor has it that for this undiplomatic act, the Soviet delegation was allegedly fined by the UN for 2 thousand dollars, but never paid the fine, since all the documents related to this incident were mysteriously disappeared from UN files.

There was another episode when, during a speech at the 15th session of the UN General Assembly, Khrushchev used the well-known expression “Kuzka’s mother,” which the translator translated literally as “kusma’s mother,” which confused the delegations. The meaning of the phrase was completely unclear, and from this the threat acquired an ominous character. Subsequently, “kusma"s mother" was replaced by translators with another threat often used by Khrushchev in relation to the West: "We will bury you" ("we"ll bury you").

"Better red than dead"

One of the most popular stories, retold by literally all diplomats who worked at the UN, is connected with Oleg Troyanovsky.

Oleg Troyanovsky, permanent representative of the USSR to the UN (1976-1986)

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In the Security Council chamber, two extremists belonging to some Maoist group threw red paint on me and US Deputy Permanent Representative Van den Heuvel before the meeting began. When I, having changed clothes, appeared in front of the waiting journalists, answering their questions, I said: “Better red than dead.” This phrase was a great success, since at that time the far right in the United States proclaimed the words “Better dead than red” as their slogan, that is, “It is better to be dead than red.”

Oleg Troyanovsky, permanent representative of the USSR to the UN (1976-1986)

The next day, this story appeared in many newspapers and magazines as a quote of the day. They also say that the leadership of the UN Secretariat, trying to “smooth out” the oversight of its security service, paid for the purchase of new suits, shirts, boots, etc. for Soviet and American diplomats.

The chamber of secrets, or why the UN Security Council is not expanding

Next to the Security Council meeting room there is a small meeting room. There is very little space there; a maximum of three people from each country that is a permanent member of the UN Security Council can be there. Renovations were being planned, and members of the Security Council were asked if they would like to expand the premises with adjoining rooms.

Sergei Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister

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I don’t want to give anyone away, but one of the permanent members of the Security Council, the ambassador (not us) said: “No, guys, let’s not move this wall now, because as soon as we move it, there will immediately be a temptation to more actively push for expansion in the Security Council Because there will be room to expand..."

Sergei Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister

How the intelligence services missed a missile in the UN garden

"There are two architectural gifts on the grounds of the UN headquarters Soviet Union– the sculpture “Let’s Beat Swords into Plowshares” by Yevgeny Vuchetich, installed in 1959, and the monument to Zurab Tsereteli “Good Conquers Evil”, donated in 1990. Cast from bronze, it depicts St. George the Victorious piercing with a spear intercontinental missiles: Soviet SS-20 and American Pershing, which became a symbol of the end cold war", said Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Gennady Gatilov, who worked at the UN as the first deputy permanent representative of the Russian Federation and senior adviser to the office of the Secretary General.

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Legend has it that Tsereteli managed to obtain fragments of the Soviet SS-20 with great difficulty, since the relevant departments refused to meet him halfway, citing secrecy. However, when a positive decision was made, the military gave the sculptor not just a body, but almost an equipped rocket. When the monument, which was a gift to the UN from the government of the USSR, was installed in the UN garden, it turned out that at its base there were parts of a rocket with elements of a secret filling. It was with great difficulty that they were dismantled. In this form, St. George the Victorious still stands in the UN garden

Gennady Gatilov, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation

UN Sleeping Guide

“In the second half of the nineties, the French ambassador to the UN was the famous diplomat Alain Dejammet,” said the former permanent representative of Tajikistan to the UN, and now ambassador to the PRC, Rashid Alimov. “He had a reputation as a taciturn, balanced diplomat, without bright expressed feeling humor. Therefore, a big surprise for many was the appearance at the UN headquarters of a brochure written by him under the intriguing title Sleeping in the United Nations - about the best places in the UN to sleep.

The author of the UN Sleeping Places Guide divided places for a good night's sleep during long meetings into five categories and assigned them the corresponding number of stars: not recommended, acceptable, pleasant, very good and exceptionally good. With the pedantry characteristic of a researcher, he identified the most comfortable, mostly dark, corners and described their comfort, lighting, absence of external stimuli and noise, as well as frequency of use. Everyone who met the guide paid tribute to Dejami’s objectivity and wit: the most best place For good sleep he named the private office of the French delegation in the UN Secretariat, hidden from prying eyes, and gave second place in popularity to the UN Periodicals Library, which, in his words, “gives the impression of an abandoned monastery.”

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One of my colleagues then noted that most likely the French ambassador, during his four years of work at the UN, gained this knowledge and experience by conducting “grueling sleep experiments” on himself. To be fair, it should be said that up to 7 thousand meetings are held at the UN every year, many of them last until midnight, and not everyone can endure such a grueling marathon

Rashid Alimov, Ambassador of Tajikistan to China

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THE FUTURE OF THE UN

Besides peacekeeping activities, among the priorities of the UN is work to promote respect for human rights, protect environment; African development; the fight against disease and poverty, drug addiction, terrorism; protection of intellectual property rights, assistance to refugees, destruction of nuclear, chemical and conventional weapons.