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

Important role In carrying out the diverse functions of the UN, the General Assembly plays a deliberative representative body, in which all member states of the UN are represented. The General Assembly is endowed, in accordance with the UN Charter, with a number of very important functions, and above all in considering cardinal issues of world politics: strengthening international peace, mitigating international tension, arms reduction and disarmament, creating conditions for the development of friendly relations and cooperation between states in a variety of fields.

In accordance with Art. 10 of the UN Charter, the General Assembly is empowered 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 of the UN and to make recommendations to member states of the UN or the Security Council on any such questions or matters. The General Assembly is also empowered to consider general principles cooperation in maintaining international peace and security, including the principles defining disarmament and arms regulation, as well as discuss a wide range of problems of cooperation between states in the political, economic, social, environmental, scientific, technical and other fields and make recommendations on them.

The General Assembly holds annual regular sessions, which open on the third Tuesday in September, as well as special and emergency special sessions. During the regular session of the General Assembly, meetings are held of the plenary session of the General Assembly, the General Committee, the Credentials Committee and seven main committees: the First (disarmament and security issues), the Special Political (political issues), the Second (economic and financial issues), the Third (social and humanitarian issues), Fourth (decolonization issues), Fifth (administrative and budgetary issues) and Sixth (legal issues). The provisional agenda for the next session is drawn up Secretary General and is communicated to UN members at least 60 days before the opening of the session. It included 33 questions at the first part of the 1st session of the General Assembly, and starting from the 20th session it includes more than 100 questions.

The General Assembly allows for the exchange of views and the development of agreed decisions, creates unique conditions for diplomatic negotiations and consultations between representatives of states and provides an opportunity for a significant number of heads of state and government, as well as foreign ministers, to meet and discuss problems of world politics that interest them.

The General Assembly plays a significant role in the activities of the UN. She made a significant contribution to the development and preparation of a number of important international documents. Within the UN, a lot of work is being done to further the progressive development and codification of the principles and norms of international law. Ensuring this extremely important area of ​​UN activity is directly provided for in Art. 13 of the UN Charter, which states that the General Assembly shall undertake studies and make recommendations for the purpose of “promoting international cooperation in the political field and the promotion of the progressive development of international law and its codification."

Each member of the General Assembly, regardless of the size of the territory, population, economic and military power, has one vote. General Assembly decisions on important issues are adopted by a 2/3 majority of the members of the Assembly present and voting. Decisions on other issues, including the determination of additional categories of issues that are subject to a 2/3 majority vote, are made by a simple majority of those present and voting. On some important issues, such as elections of non-permanent members of the Security Council, elections of members of ECOSOC, Trusteeship Council, admission of new members to the UN, appointment of the UN Secretary-General, suspension of the rights and privileges of members of the Organization, expulsion of its members from the Organization, budgetary issues and other administrative -technical issues, the General Assembly makes binding decisions. For the rest, including those related to the maintenance of international peace and security, the General Assembly adopts resolutions and declarations of a recommendatory nature.

States that are not members of the UN, those with permanent observers at the UN (Vatican City, Switzerland) and those without, can take part in the work of the General Assembly. In addition, the Palestine Liberation Organization and representatives of a number of international organizations (specialized agencies of the UN, OAS, Arab League, OAU, EU, etc.) received the right to participate as observers.

Security Council. One of the main bodies of the United Nations, consisting of 15 members: five of them are permanent (Russia, USA, Great Britain, France and China), the remaining ten members are “non-permanent” and are elected to the Council in accordance with the procedure provided for in paragraph 2 of Art. . 23 of the UN Charter.

There is a special procedure for making decisions in the Security Council depending on their importance. Decisions on procedural issues are considered adopted if any nine members of the Council vote for them. Decisions on all other matters require a minimum of nine votes, including the concurring votes of all permanent members. This means that it is enough for one or more permanent members of the Council to vote against any decision - and it is considered rejected. This procedure is called a permanent member veto. This achieves consistency in the actions of the permanent members of the Security Council in the field of maintaining international peace and

security.

At the same time, since 1971, when China did not take part in the vote on Resolution No. 305 of December 19, 1971 on the Cyprus issue, a practice has developed in the activities of the Security Council, resulting in a procedure for the “non-participation” of permanent members of the Council in voting, which, however, does not count as a veto.

The UN Charter assigns exceptionally great powers to the Security Council in preventing war and creating conditions for peaceful and fruitful cooperation between states. Behind post-war period there was practically not a single important international event that threatened the peace and security of peoples or caused disputes and disagreements between states that did not attract the attention of the Security Council, and a significant number of them (over 165 in the post-war years) became the subject of consideration at meetings of the Council Security. The Security Council has become the basis of a mechanism for collective enforcement of international law.

The Security Council can adopt, according to the UN Charter, legal acts of two kinds. Like other main organs of the UN, the Council can adopt recommendations, that is, legal acts providing for certain methods and procedures with which a particular state is asked to comply with its actions. The recommendations do not impose legal obligations on states.

The Security Council can also make legally binding decisions, the implementation of which is ensured by the coercive force of all UN member states. Some decisions of the Security Council adopted in accordance with the UN Charter, in certain cases, may also be legal acts that have general normative significance.

This excludes the possibility of appealing or reviewing decisions taken by the Security Council in any other body. Such decisions are final and not subject to revision. However, the Security Council itself may reconsider its decision, for example, due to newly discovered circumstances unknown to the Council when the original decision was taken, or it may return to consideration of an issue and change its original resolutions.

The main form of recommendations and binding decisions adopted by the Security Council throughout its activities are resolutions, of which over 730 were adopted. Along with this, statements by the Chairman of the Council, the number of which exceeded 100, began to play an increasingly prominent role in the practice of the Security Council.

The UN Charter ensures the continued functioning of the Security Council and mandates "prompt and effective action" on behalf of UN members. To this end, each member of the Security Council must always be represented at the seat of the UN. According to the rules of procedure, the interval between meetings of the Security Council should not exceed 14 days, although in practice this rule was not always observed.

Since 1987, a new form of activity of the Security Council has emerged; meetings of the foreign ministers of the five permanent members of the Council with the UN Secretary-General began to be held. The first such meeting was held on September 25, 1987. All this testifies to the viability of the UN system.

International Court. An important place in the UN structure is occupied by the International Court of Justice, the main judicial body of the UN. It is composed of 15 independent judges, selected regardless of their nationality, from among persons of high moral character who meet the requirements in their countries for appointment to the highest judicial positions, or who are jurists of recognized authority in the field of international law. Judges are elected by the General Assembly and the Security Council for a term of nine years with the right to re-election. Moreover, to be elected by the Security Council, a candidate only needs to receive 8 votes (all other decisions require a majority of 9 votes). Candidates for election to the Court are nominated by national groups of members of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (4 members in each group). The seat of the Court is The Hague.

Its Statute is an integral part of the UN Charter, therefore all member states of the Organization are automatically parties to the Statute. According to paragraph 2 of Art. 93 of the UN Charter, the General Assembly, on the recommendation of the Security Council, determines the conditions under which a state that is not a member of the UN may become a party to the Statute of the Court. Thus, the states parties to the Statute of the Court are Switzerland and Nauru, although they are not members of the UN. Said states may participate in the election of members of the Court under the conditions established by General Assembly resolution 264 (III). They may also participate in the work of the General Assembly in connection with amendments to the Statute of the Court in the same manner as members of the UN. Amendments to the Statute of the Court, in accordance with General Assembly resolution 2520 (XXIV) of December 4, 1969, enter into force for all States Parties to the Statute after they have been adopted by a 2/3 vote of the Parties to the Statute and ratified in accordance with their constitutional procedure 2 / from the states parties to the Statute.

The UN Charter strictly differentiates the competence of the most important political body - the Security Council and the International Court of Justice. As emphasized in paragraph 3 of Art. 36 of the UN Charter, the Security Council takes into account that “disputes of a legal nature shall, as a general rule, be referred by the parties to the International Court of Justice in accordance with the provisions of the Statute of the Court.” Only states can be parties to cases before the Court. The jurisdiction of the Court includes all cases that will be referred to it by the parties, and all matters specifically provided for by the UN Charter or existing treaties and conventions. The court usually sits in plenary sessions, but it may also, if the parties so request, form smaller groups called chambers. Decisions taken by the Chambers shall be deemed to have been rendered by the Court en banc. IN Lately The court began to resort to this summary procedure more often.

States may, according to Art. 36 of the Statute, declare at any time that they recognize, without special agreement, ipso facto, in relation to any other State accepting the same obligation, the jurisdiction of the Court is compulsory in all legal disputes relating to: the interpretation of a treaty; any question of international law; the existence of a fact which, if established, would constitute a breach of the international obligation and the nature and extent of the compensation due for the breach of the international obligation. The above statements may be unconditional, or on conditions of reciprocity on the part of certain states, or for a certain time.

To date, less than 1/3 of the UN member states have expressed their consent to the compulsory jurisdiction of the Court in accordance with paragraph 2 of Art. 36 of its Statute, and many statements are accompanied by such reservations as to make them essentially illusory. During the existence of the Court, states brought more than 60 disputes to its consideration. The decisions of the Court are considered binding on the states parties to the dispute. If any party to a case fails to fulfill an obligation imposed on it by a decision of the Court, the Security Council, at the request of the other party, “may, if it considers it necessary, make recommendations or decide on the adoption of measures to enforce the decision” (Article 2, paragraph 2) 94 of the UN Charter).

In addition to judicial jurisdiction, the International Court of Justice also exercises advisory jurisdiction. According to Art. 96 of the UN Charter, the General Assembly or the Security Council may request advisory opinions from the International Court of Justice on any legal matter. In addition, other UN organs and specialized agencies, which the General Assembly may at any time authorize to do so, may also request advisory opinions of the Court on legal questions arising within their sphere of activity. Currently, 4 principal organs of the UN, 2 subsidiary organs of the General Assembly, 15 specialized agencies of the UN and the IAEA (a total of 22 bodies) can request advisory opinions from the Court.

The International Court of Justice is the most important international legal institution, capable of peacefully resolving disputes and disagreements between states and truly ensuring law and order in the world. The International Court of Justice, according to the UN Charter, is the main judicial body of the UN, facilitating the resolution of controversial international problems. There are more than enough examples. Thus, in 1986, the International Court of Justice decided on the illegality of US military and paramilitary activities against Nicaragua and on the border dispute between Mali and Burkina Faso, as well as the 1988 advisory opinion of the Court on the illegality of the US authorities’ closure of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s representative office at the UN in New York.

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2. General Assembly. Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948
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UN General Assembly is the main decision-making, deliberative and representative body of the United Nations. The composition of the Assembly is formed from representatives of all UN member states. Today, the United Nations includes 193 states, each of which is represented by its own delegation at meetings of the General Assembly. Sessions of the Assembly take place at the UN headquarters in New York.

History of the creation of the United Nations

The idea of ​​creation international organization, whose main task was to maintain peace and security, originated during the Second World War. The first step towards the creation of the UN was the signing by the United States of America and Great Britain of a document that set out the basic principles of international security. It was signed on August 14, 1941 by US President F. D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister W. Churchill at the Argentia naval base in Newfoundland. The document was called the Atlantic Charter.

Soon, 26 countries included in the anti-Hitler coalition joined the Atlantic Charter. On January 1, 1942, they signed a United Nations declaration expressing support for the main points of the charter.

At the Moscow conference, held from October 19 to 30, 1943, representatives of the USSR, USA, Great Britain and China signed a declaration calling for the creation of an international organization that would deal with global security problems. The issue of creating such an organization was also raised at the meeting of the leaders of the allied countries on December 1, 1943 in Tehran.

From September 21 to October 7, 1944, at meetings held in Washington, diplomats of the USSR, USA, Great Britain and China agreed on the structure, goals and functions of new organization. On February 11, 1945, at the Yalta Conference, Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt expressed their readiness to create “a universal international organization to maintain peace and security.”

The result of this agreement was the Conference held in San Francisco on April 25, 1945. At this conference, delegates from 50 countries prepared the Charter of the new organization. On October 24, 1945, the UN Charter was ratified by the countries that are permanent members of the Security Council (USSR, USA, Great Britain, China, France) and thus the United Nations was created.

The first meeting of the UN General Assembly took place on January 10, 1946 in the Central Hall of the Palace of Westminster in London. It was attended by delegations from 51 states. The first resolution by the General Assembly was adopted on January 24, 1946. It concerned the peaceful use of atomic energy and the elimination of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction.

Dynamics of increase in UN member countries

Structure of the UN General Assembly

The General Assembly was established under the Charter of the United Nations in 1945. The Assembly is led by a chairman who is elected by vote. Also, 21 deputy chairmen are selected by voting. When voting, each UN member state has 1 vote. The chairman and his deputies are elected for one session and perform their duties during the session at which they were elected. The current President of the UN General Assembly is Sam Kutesa (Uganda).

Each new session of the UN General Assembly begins with the resolution of organizational issues, after which the general debate begins. During the general debate, representatives of all states that are members of the UN have the opportunity to express their position on international issues. As a rule, the general debate lasts 7 days, after which the Assembly moves on to resolve issues on its agenda. Since there are a lot of issues under consideration by the UN General Assembly, special committees have been created to optimize its work. The committees are divided according to the topic of issues and are directly involved in their discussion. After which the resolutions adopted by the committees are considered at plenary sessions of the UN General Assembly. Today there are 6 main committees:

• The First Committee considers issues related to disarmament and international security. The current committee chair is Courtney Rattrey (Jamaica);
• The second committee considers issues related to economic and financial activities. The current chairman of the committee is Sebastiano Cardi (Italy);
• The third committee considers issues related to social and humanitarian problems, and also considers cultural issues. The current chairperson of the committee is Sofia Mesquita Borges (Timor Leste);
• The Fourth Committee deals with political issues that are not within the jurisdiction of other committees. These include issues of decolonization and the activities of UNRWA (UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East). The current chairman of the committee is Durga Prasad Bhattarai (Nepal);
• The Fifth Committee considers administrative and budgetary matters of the United Nations. The current chairman of the committee is Frantisek Ruzechka (Slovakia);
• The Sixth Committee considers issues of international law. The current chairman of the committee is Tuwako Nathaniel Manongi (Tanzania);

In addition to the six main committees, there is a credentials committee and a general committee. The Credentials Committee has 9 members appointed by the General Assembly whose task is to verify the credentials of representatives of UN member states.

The General Committee deals with organizational issues of the Assembly. His task is to assist the Chairman in drawing up the agenda for each plenary meeting, establishing the priority of issues to be considered and coordinating the work of the main six committees. In addition, the General Committee provides recommendations on the closing date of the General Assembly session. The committee consists of a chairman, 21 deputies and the heads of six main committees.

In addition to committees, there are other subsidiary bodies that resolve a narrower range of issues. Auxiliary bodies are divided into councils, commissions and working groups. Councils and commissions are divided into executive and advisory. Today there are the Executive Council of the UN Children's Fund, the Executive Council of the World Food Program, and the Executive Council of the UN Population Development Program. Advisory bodies include the Disarmament Council and the UNRWA Advisory Commission. In addition, the structure of the General Assembly includes:

• International Law Commission. Deals with issues of progressive development of international law and its codification;
• UN Commission on Law international trade. Deals with issues of promoting the unification of international trade law;
• Disarmament Commission;
• International Civil Service Commission. Deals with the creation of a unified international civil service through the application of common standards and practices in relation to personnel;
• Peacebuilding Commission. Deals with issues of preventing military conflicts;
• Commission of Auditors. Provides independent audit services.

Working groups are created by the General Assembly in accordance with adopted resolutions and decisions at plenary sessions. The groups are divided into open-ended groups and ad hoc working groups. Open-ended groups include groups that consider issues: protecting the rights of older people, the financial situation of the UN, the import and export of conventional weapons, etc. Special working groups deal with the issues of: revitalizing the activities of the General Assembly, ensuring peace in Africa, coordinating meetings at the highest level related to economic development of states, etc.

Tasks and functions of the General Assembly

The UN General Assembly is the most representative body of this organization, as it includes delegations from all UN member countries. At its core, the General Assembly is a consultative international body. Indeed, unlike resolutions of the UN Security Council, resolutions of the General Assembly are not mandatory, but advisory in nature.

But at the same time, the resolutions adopted by the Assembly have great moral and political significance for international relations. The current Ban Ki-moon said that although the resolutions of the General Assembly are not binding, the UN will be guided by their provisions in its work.

Such a statement by Ban Ki-moon is primarily due to the fact that the resolution of the General Assembly is not imposed. This distinguishes GA resolutions from UN Security Council resolutions. Although Security Council decisions are binding for all UN member countries, a resolution can only be adopted if none of the permanent members of the Security Council votes “against”. Resolutions of the General Assembly are adopted subject to a 50% majority vote. When considering particularly important issues, the consent of 2/3 of the delegates is required to make a positive decision.

The UN General Assembly is a forum for discussing all problems of international politics prescribed in the Charter of the organization. According to the current Charter, the General Assembly is called upon to perform the following functions:

• Discussion of issues related to maintaining peace and security, disarmament issues. Making recommendations on these issues;
• Discussion and making recommendations on issues related to the organization and the UN Charter.
• Organization of research in the fields of international law and international cooperation in various fields. Promoting the implementation of human rights and freedoms;
• Making recommendations for the peaceful resolution of conflicts;
• Review and approval of the UN budget;
• Election and approval of representatives to the governing bodies of the UN.

In addition, the UN General Assembly can take the necessary measures in cases where there is a threat to the security of the world, and the UN Security Council cannot make a decision due to its veto by one of its permanent members. This is spelled out in the “Unity for Peace” resolution of November 3, 1950.

Procedure of the General Assembly

The UN General Assembly is a sessional body. There are annual regular and extraordinary special sessions. Regular sessions of the General Assembly begin on the third Tuesday in September. In this case, the Secretary General notifies all participants at least 60 days before the start of the meetings. Also, the Secretary General draws up a preliminary agenda for the next session and any of the participating countries has the right to submit additional items for consideration no less than 30 days before the opening of the session.

At the first meeting, elections of the Chairman of the UN General Assembly, his deputies, the heads of the six main committees are mandatory, and the closing date of the session is also determined.

Extraordinary sessions of the Assembly are convened by the UN Secretary General at the request of the Security Council or in the event of receipt of notifications from the majority of UN members about the convening of such a session. Any member of the UN can send notice of convening an extraordinary session, and the Secretary General is obliged to notify other participants. A session is convened if, within 30 days, the majority of participants give their consent to hold meetings.

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In accordance with paragraph 1 of Art. 7 of the UN Charter, the main organs of the Organization are:

• General Assembly;
• Security Council;
• Economic and Social Council;
• Guardianship Council;
• international Court;
• Secretariat.

All are headquartered in New York, with the exception of the International Court of Justice, which is located in The Hague.

UN General Assembly

The General Assembly is the most representative body of the Organization. It consists of all members of the Organization. From the contents of Chapter IV of the UN Charter, it can be concluded that the General Assembly is the highest body of the Organization. According to Art. 15 of the Charter, it receives and considers annual and special reports of the Security Council. These reports must include an account of the measures to maintain international peace and security that the Security Council has decided to take or has taken. The General Assembly receives and considers reports from other organs of the Organization.

Important! Please keep in mind that:

• Each case is unique and individual.
• A thorough study of the issue does not always guarantee a positive outcome. It depends on many factors.

To get the most detailed advice on your issue, you just need to choose any of the options offered:

The General Assembly has the right to discuss any issues within the framework of the UN Charter and make appropriate recommendations member states UN and Security Council. However, when the Security Council is exercising the functions assigned to it by the UN Charter in relation to any dispute or situation, the General Assembly cannot make any recommendations relating to that dispute or situation unless the Security Council so requests.

From the contents of Art. 10 of the UN Charter it follows that the General Assembly has the right to:

1. 1. discuss any issues or matters within the limits of the UN Charter;
   2. develop and approve recommendations to member states and the Security Council. It has the right to draw the attention of the Security Council to situations that could threaten international peace and security.

The General Assembly also organizes studies and makes recommendations with a view to:

• promoting international cooperation in the political field and encouraging the progressive development of international law and its codification;
• promoting cooperation in the fields of economic, social, cultural, educational, health and promoting the implementation of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction as to race, gender, language or religion.

More information about the sessions of the UN General Assembly

The General Assembly shall meet in regular annual sessions and in such special sessions as circumstances may require. The General Assembly meets annually for regular session on the third Tuesday in September. The Secretary-General shall notify all UN members of the opening of such a session at least 60 days in advance. On the recommendation of the General Committee, at the beginning of each session, it sets the closing date for the next session.

Special sessions of the General Assembly are convened within 15 days from the date of receipt by the Secretary-General of a request from the Security Council or from a majority of UN members to convene such a session or a message from a majority of UN members to accede to the request for convening.

Emergency special sessions are convened within 24 hours from the receipt by the Secretary-General of a request for the convening of such a session, received from the Security Council and supported by the votes of any 9 members of the Council, the demand of a majority of UN members, expressed by voting in the Intersessional Committee. Any UN member may request the Secretary-General to convene an emergency special session. The Secretary-General shall immediately notify the other Members of the Organization of this demand and ask them whether they accede to it. If within 30 days a majority of UN members join this demand, the Secretary-General will convene a special session of the UN General Assembly.

The provisional agenda for the next session is drawn up by the UN Secretary-General and communicated to its members at least 60 days before the opening of the session. It consists of more than 100 questions. However, the constant points are the following questions:

• report of the Secretary-General on the work of the Organization;
• reports of the Security Council, ECOSOC, Trusteeship Council, International Court of Justice, subsidiary bodies of the General Assembly and specialized agencies;
• all items the inclusion of which the General Assembly decided at one of its previous sessions;
• all items proposed by any UN member;
• all items relating to the budget for the next financial year and the report on the account for the past financial year;
• all items which the Secretary-General considers necessary to submit to the General Assembly for consideration;
• all items proposed by non-UN member states.

The delegation of a UN member state to a session of the General Assembly consists of no more than five representatives and five alternates and the number of advisers, technical advisers, experts and persons in similar positions required by the delegation.
English, Spanish, Chinese, Russian and French languages are the official and working languages ​​of the General Assembly, its committees and subcommittees. Arabic is both the official and working language of the General Assembly and its Main Committees. All resolutions and other documents are published in the languages ​​of the General Assembly. By decision of the General Assembly, its documents and the documents of its committees and subcommittees are published in any other language.

Committees of the UN General Assembly

The General Assembly may establish committees which it deems necessary to carry out its functions. The most detailed discussion of issues takes place in the following seven main committees:

1. 1. in the First Committee— on political and security issues, including disarmament issues (starting from the XXXI session of the General Assembly, this committee deals mainly with disarmament issues);
   2. Special Political Committee, to which political issues within the competence of the First Committee are transferred;
   3. Second Committee - on economic and financial issues;
   4. Third Committee— on social, humanitarian and cultural issues;
   5. Fourth Committee— on issues of international trusteeship and non-self-governing territories;
   6. Fifth Committee - on administrative and budgetary issues;
   7. The sixth committee is on legal issues.

Resolutions and decisions of the UN General Assembly

The General Assembly at its sessions adopts:

• regulations;
• solutions;
• recommendations.

As is clear from paragraph 2 of Art. 4 of the UN Charter, the term “resolution” refers to acts adopted by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council. They are usually addressed to member states and remind them of their rights and responsibilities. The act of admitting or expelling states from the UN is also formalized in the form of a resolution.

The term “recommendation” appears repeatedly in the UN Charter (Articles 10, 11, 13, etc.). For example, according to paragraph 1 of Art. 11 of the Charter, the General Assembly is authorized to consider the general principles of cooperation in the maintenance of international peace and security, including the principles governing disarmament and arms regulation, and to make recommendations regarding these principles to the Members of the Organization or the Security Council. In Art. 13 of the UN Charter states that the General Assembly shall organize studies and make recommendations with a view to promoting international cooperation in the political field and encouraging the progressive development of international law and its codification, as well as promoting international cooperation in the fields of economic, social, cultural, educational, etc. e. This article of the UN Charter specifies in what cases recommendations are still made by the General Assembly.

The term “decision” is used in paragraph 2 of Art. 18 of the UN Charter. It states the following: decisions of the General Assembly on important issues are taken by a 2/3 majority of the members of the Assembly present and voting. These issues include: recommendations regarding the maintenance of peace and security, election of non-permanent members of the Security Council, admission of new members of the Organization, suspension of the rights and privileges of members of the Organization.

Thus, according to paragraph 2 of Art. 18 of the Charter:

• decisions of the General Assembly on peace and security issues are called recommendations;
• solutions regarding the admission of new members and other issues in accordance with paragraph 2 of Art. 4 are called regulations.

All resolutions of the General Assembly, regardless of name and content, are numbered in order. The session number is indicated by a Roman numeral. Special sessions are preceded by the letter “S”, emergency sessions are preceded by “ES”. All resolutions have their own name.

Regardless of population size, all member states - from the largest (China - 1.2 billion people) to the smallest (Palau - 16 thousand people) - have one vote in the General Assembly.

Decisions of the General Assembly on important issues are made by a 2/3 majority of the members of the Assembly present and voting.

According to paragraph 2 of Art. 18 of the UN Charter, the following issues are important:

1. recommendations regarding the maintenance of international peace and security;
2. elections of non-permanent members of the Security Council;
3. election of members of the Economic and Social Council;
4. election of members of the Trusteeship Council;
5. admission of new members to the UN;
6. suspension of the rights and privileges of UN members;
7. expulsion of its members from the UN;
8. issues related to the functioning of the guardianship system;
9. budgetary issues.

The list of these questions is exhaustive.

Decisions on other issues, including the determination of additional categories of issues that are subject to a 2/3 majority vote, are made by a simple majority of those present and voting.

Resolutions of the UN General Assembly within the meaning of Art. 11 of the Charter are not binding. They contain only recommendations to member states, including the rules of so-called “soft” law.

According to Art. 23 of the UN Charter, the Security Council consists of 15 members of the Organization. Of these, 5 are permanent, namely: Russia, China, France, Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the USA.

The General Assembly elects 10 other UN members as non-permanent members. The latter shall be elected for a term of two years and in their election due regard shall be given to the degree of participation of the candidates in the maintenance of international peace and security and to the achievement of other objectives of the Organization, as well as to equitable geographical distribution.

The seats of non-permanent members of the Council are distributed as follows: from Asia and Africa - 5 members, Eastern Europe - 1, Latin America and the Caribbean - 2, Western Europe, Canada, New Zealand and Australia - 2 members.

IN last years At sessions of the General Assembly, the issue of increasing the number of members of the Security Council to 20 or more, including permanent ones - to 7-10, is very actively discussed.

To ensure fast and effective action Members of the UN entrust to the Security Council the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security and agree that, in discharging its responsibilities arising from this responsibility, the Security Council acts on their behalf.

The Security Council submits annual reports and special reports as necessary to the General Assembly.

The Security Council will be able, in accordance with its responsibilities under the UN Charter, to maintain and strengthen international peace and security only if the decisions of the Council have the full support of the international community and if the parties involved in conflicts implement those decisions in full.

Functions and powers of the Security Council:

1. maintain international peace and security in accordance with the purposes and principles of the United Nations;
2. investigate any disputes or situations that may cause international friction;
3. make recommendations regarding methods for resolving such disputes or the terms for their resolution;
4. make plans for the establishment of a system of arms regulation, determine the existence of a threat to the peace or act and make recommendations on measures to be taken;
5. call on UN member states to apply economic sanctions and other measures not related to the use of armed forces to prevent or stop aggression:
6. take military action against the aggressor;
7. make recommendations regarding the admission of new members and the conditions under which states may become parties to the Statute of the International Court of Justice;
8. carry out UN trusteeship functions in strategic areas;
9. make recommendations to the General Assembly regarding the appointment of the Secretary-General and, together with the General Assembly, select judges of the International Court of Justice;
10. submit annual and special reports to the General Assembly.

The role of the UN, and in particular the Security Council, in maintaining peace and ensuring international security comes down to the implementation of the following four activities.

1. Preventive diplomacy- these are actions aimed at preventing the emergence of disputes between the parties, preventing existing disputes from escalating into conflicts and limiting the scope of conflicts after they arise.
2. Peacekeeping is actions aimed at persuading warring parties to reach an agreement, mainly through such peaceful means as provided for in Chapter VI of the UN Charter.
3. Keeping the Peace is the establishment of a UN presence in a given area, which involves the deployment of UN military and/or police personnel, and often civilian personnel as well.
4. Peacebuilding in the post-conflict period- these are actions aimed at preventing the outbreak of violence between countries and peoples after the elimination of a conflict or conflict situation.

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According to the UN, these four activities together, carried out with the support of all members, can become a holistic UN in ensuring peace in the spirit of its Charter.

When the Security Council is informed of a threat to peace, it asks the parties to reach agreement through peaceful means. The Council may act as a mediator or formulate principles for resolving the dispute. He may request the Secretary-General to conduct an investigation and report on the situation. In the event of the outbreak of hostilities, the Security Council takes measures to ensure a ceasefire. It may, with the consent of the parties concerned, send peacekeeping missions to conflict areas to ease tensions and disengage opposing forces. The Security Council has the right to deploy peacekeeping forces to prevent a resumption of conflict. It has the power to enforce its decisions by imposing economic sanctions and deciding on the use of collective military measures.

The legal status of UN peacekeeping forces is determined by agreement between the UN and the host state. Under these agreements, once the Security Council has decided to establish a peacekeeping operation, the Member States concerned are required to facilitate the implementation of the operation's mandate.

According to Art. 5 and 6 of the Charter, the General Assembly, on the recommendation of the Security Council, may suspend the exercise of the rights and privileges belonging to a state as a member of the organization if preventive or enforcement actions have been taken against it by the Security Council. A UN member state that systematically violates the principles enshrined in the Charter may be expelled from the Organization by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council.

The Security Council acts on behalf of all members of the Organization. In accordance with Art. 25 of the Charter, members of the Organization agree to “obey and implement the decisions of the Security Council.” According to Art. 43 they undertake to place at the disposal of the Security Council, upon its request and in accordance with a special agreement or agreements, the armed forces, assistance and appropriate facilities, including rights of passage, necessary for the maintenance of international peace and security. Such agreement or agreements shall determine the number and type of troops, their degree of readiness and their general disposition and the nature of the services and assistance provided.

The UN Charter gives the Security Council the power to use temporary and coercive measures.

Temporary measures are aimed at preventing the situation from worsening and must not prejudice the rights, claims or position of the parties concerned. Such measures may include a requirement for the parties to cease hostilities, withdraw troops to certain lines, and also resort to one or another peaceful settlement procedure, including entering into direct negotiations, resorting to arbitration, using regional organizations and organs. Temporary measures are not compulsory. They are not legally binding on the parties, but the Security Council, in accordance with Art. 40 of the UN Charter “takes due account of the failure to comply with these temporary measures.”

Coercive measures are divided into measures not related to the use of armed forces, and actions with the use of armed forces (Articles 41 and 22 of the Charter). Their application is the exclusive competence of the Security Council, constituting one of its most important powers.

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In accordance with the state 41 of the Charter, coercive measures without the use of armed forces may include a complete or partial interruption of economic relations, railway, sea, air, postal, telegraph, radio and other means of communication, severance of diplomatic relations, as well as other measures of a similar nature.

In cases where the above measures become insufficient or ineffective, the Security Council, on the basis of Art. 42 of the Charter has the right to take actions necessary by the UN armed forces to maintain international peace and security. All members of the UN undertake to place at the disposal of the Security Council, upon its request, armed forces, assistance and appropriate facilities, including rights of passage through territory, territorial waters and airspace. A special kind coercive measures is the suspension of the exercise of the rights and privileges of any UN member in respect of which the Security Council has decided on coercive actions. Such a measure is also expulsion from UN membership for violation of the Charter (Article 6).

More information about UN Security Council meetings

The Security Council meets almost daily to consider issues on its agenda, prevent threats to peace, take various measures to monitor and resolve conflicts and mobilize regional and international support for these actions. To ensure continuity of work, each member of the Security Council must be represented at the seat of the UN at all times. Any state that is not a member of the Security Council may participate in its meetings without the right to vote if the issue being discussed in any way affects the interests of this member of the Organization. A non-UN member state may be invited to Council meetings if it is a party to a dispute being considered by the Security Council. Moreover, he sets such conditions for the participation of a state that is not a member of the Organization as he finds fair.

Meetings of the Security Council, with the exception of periodic meetings (such meetings are held twice a year), are convened by the Chairman at any time when the latter considers it necessary. However, the interval between meetings should be no more than 14 days.

The presidency of the Security Council is exercised by its members alternately in the English alphabetical order of their names. Each chairman holds this position for one calendar month.

English, Arabic, Spanish, Chinese, Russian and French are both official and working languages ​​of the Security Council. Speeches given in one of the six languages ​​are translated into the other five languages.

Each member of the Security Council has one vote. A majority of nine votes is required to resolve substantive issues, but this number must include the votes of all five permanent members of the Security Council. This is the essence of the principle of unanimity of the five great powers. This principle is of particular importance for the successful functioning of the entire security system within the UN. It places primary responsibility on the great powers for the effectiveness of the Organization. The USSR (and now Russia) and the USA used their veto power quite often.

The Security Council makes decisions and recommendations at its meetings. In any case, they are called resolutions, which are legally binding (Articles 25, 48, etc.).

UN specialized agencies

UN specialized agencies - these are international (interstate) organizations of a universal nature, open to the participation of any state and linked with the United Nations by special agreements with them in order to coordinate their activities in the field of socio-economic relations between states.

At the same time, specialized institutions fully retain their status as independent international organizations created and operating on the basis of their constituent act (interstate treaty), which defines the goals and objectives of this organization, its organizational structure, functions and powers of its bodies.

There are currently 15 UN specialized agencies:

1. 1. Universal Postal Union (UPU).
   2. Group World Bank:
      • International Development Association (IDA)
      • International Finance Corporation (IFC)
      • International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)
      • International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID)
      • Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA).
   3. World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
   4. World organization health (WHO).
   5. World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
   6. World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).
   7. International maritime organization(IMO).
   8. International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
   9. International Labor Organization (ILO).
   10. International Monetary Fund (IMF).
   11. International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
   12. International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
   13. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
   14. United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
   15. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

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International Labor Organization (ILO)- created in 1919 by decision of the Paris Peace Conference. Its charter was part XIII of the Versailles Peace Treaty of 1919. In 1946, the ILO became the first specialized agency of the UN. The main goals of the ILO are to promote social justice, improve working conditions, and improve the living standards of the population. For these purposes, the ILO is developing international conventions concerning working conditions for various categories of workers, their wages, working hours, minimum age for entry to work, special insurance, paid holidays, etc. They become binding on member states upon ratification by their states in accordance with their constitutional procedure. The ILO also makes recommendations to member states.

Universal Postal Union (UPU)) - created in 1874 in order to facilitate postal communications between different territories (it was created in those conditions as a so-called administrative union). Since 1947, a specialized agency of the UN. It operates on the basis of its charter, the general regulations of the UPU and the Universal Postal Convention, the latest edition of which came into force in 1971. Almost all states of the world are members of the UPU. Their territories are considered as a single postal territory. The goals of the UPU are to organize and improve the postal service, as well as to provide technical assistance to developing countries in organizing postal services for their population.

International Telecommunication Union (ITU)- formed in 1932 at the World Telecommunication Conference on the basis of the merger of the International Telegraph Union (founded in 1865) and the International Radiotelegraph Union (operating since 1906) into the ITU. ITU has been a specialized organization of the UN since 1947. It operates on the basis International Convention telecommunications and its complementary regulations. The goals of the ITU are to coordinate all types of international telecommunications, including space communications, promote the rational use of radiocommunication services, and distribute its radio frequency spectrum. ITU provides technical assistance to the development of regional radiocommunication networks and their inclusion in the worldwide system, and provides technical and other assistance to developing countries in organizing their radiocommunication services.

World Health Organization (WHO)- was created in 1946 and since 1948 has been operating as a specialized agency of the UN, uniting most of the states of the world. The purpose of WHO, in accordance with its Constitution, is the achievement by all peoples of a higher level of health through not only public health efforts, but also appropriate measures of a socio-economic nature. WHO activities are carried out by providing medical services to countries, providing related assistance to developing countries and organizing and promoting medical research. The latter is carried out, in particular, by organizing an international network of laboratories that study pathogens, create the necessary vaccines, and also train the necessary scientists.

World Meteorological Organization (WMO)— created in 1947 on the basis of the corresponding non-governmental organization that existed since 1873. Since 1951, it has functioned as a specialized agency of the UN, uniting almost all states. Its goals are worldwide cooperation in weather observations, ensuring the rapid exchange of weather information and ensuring uniformity of weather observations and statistical data, organizing meteorological research and training meteorologists.

International Maritime Organization (IMO)— has been operating since 1982 as a specialized agency of the UN. It replaced the previously existing (since 1959) Intergovernmental Maritime Consultative Organization (IMCO).

There are five specialized committees within the IMO: Maritime Safety Committee, Legal Committee, Defense Committee marine environment, Technical Cooperation Committee and Facilitation Committee. They develop the appropriate rules of navigation and protection of the marine environment for submission to the governing bodies of the IMO.
Under the auspices of the IMO, numerous international conferences have been held, in particular on issues of protection human life at sea, load line of ships, their measurement, prevention of ship collisions and sea pollution, safety of fishing vessels, search and rescue of vessels that have suffered an accident. At such conferences, the text of international conventions is developed and adopted, i.e. work is underway to codify modern maritime law. IMO bodies also develop recommendations, codes, guidelines, manuals, etc. for navigators, designers and builders of sea vessels. All this ensures high performance of IMO activities.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)— was created and has been operating since 1946 as a specialized agency of the UN, uniting almost all existing states.

The goals of UNESCO are to promote the achievement of lasting peace, security and well-being of peoples through the development of international cooperation in the fields of education, science and culture. This organization is dedicated to promoting universal respect for justice, law and order, human rights and fundamental freedoms for all peoples of the world, without distinction of race, gender, language or religion. The main program of activity is, in particular, the elimination of illiteracy of the population, the promotion of compulsory education and raising its level, the training and dispatch of experts in the field of science and education to interested countries. UNESCO considers, within its competence, such global problems of our time as preventing the danger of a global thermonuclear catastrophe, ending the arms race, establishing a new economic order and a new information order, environmental protection, and the development of the world's oceans and space for the benefit of all mankind.

United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)— was created in 1967 in pursuance of the relevant resolution of the UN General Assembly and since 1985 has been a specialized agency of the UN.

The goals of UNIDO are to promote industrial development and industrialization of developing countries, finance relevant projects, train national personnel, as well as promote international and regional cooperation between states and coordinate their activities in this area.

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)- created in 1970 in accordance with its constituent act - the Convention concluded in 1967. The main goals of this very specific international organization - since 1974 a specialized agency of the UN - are: to promote intellectual creative activity and the protection of intellectual property throughout the world by encouraging international cooperation between states, whether or not members of WIPO, including interaction with any other international association of states in this area, as well as facilitating the transfer of technology to developing countries, with a view to accelerating their economic, social and cultural development.

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)- created and operates as a specialized agency of the UN since 1945. FAO's goals: to promote improved nutrition and raise the living standards of the population, increase labor productivity and improve food distribution, increase productivity Agriculture, forestry and fisheries, improving the living conditions of the rural population, developing the world economy, as well as organizing and promoting scientific research in the field of agriculture and nutrition.

International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is a specialized UN agency engaged in organizing and coordinating international cooperation related to the activities of international civil aviation. The ICAO Charter forms an integral part of the agreement concluded in 1944. Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation.

The goals of ICAO are: establishing the principles and methods of international air navigation, promoting the planning and development of international air transport, improving flight and space rules, ensuring the safety of international flights. Its functions include, in particular, the development and adoption, taking into account the requirements of practice international standards and recommendations aimed at unifying the Rules of International Air Navigation, which form an annex to the above Convention and are amended or supplemented as necessary.

ICAO carries out its activities through an extensive system of bodies that have compulsory jurisdiction or perform auxiliary functions.

International Monetary Fund (IMF), created in 1945 on the basis of an agreement reached at the Bretton Woods Monetary and Financial Conference in 1944 by states whose contributions to this fund amounted to 80% of its total amount. Became a specialized agency of the UN and began to implement foreign exchange transactions in 1947. The goals of the IMF are to promote international cooperation in the field of financial settlements for transactions between member states and the elimination of restrictions on the exchange of currencies that impede the development of world trade.

However, due to the fact that the decisions of the fund are made on the basis of a “weighted vote” of its members, taking into account their contributions to the amount of the fund and that 10 high-ranking members have an overwhelming number of votes developed countries Led by the United States, these states determine the monetary and financial policy of the fund and the conditions under which it provides loans to other countries.

International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)— created in 1944 by the states participating in the Bretton Woods Conference. A specialized agency of the UN since 1945. Only member states of the International Monetary Fund can become members of the IBRD.

The purpose of the IBRD is to promote the reconstruction of the economies of member states by providing them with loans for this purpose. The conditions for making relevant decisions are the same as in the International Monetary Fund.

International Finance Corporation (IFC)- established in 1956, a specialized agency of the UN since 1957. The goal of the IFC is to promote the economic development of member states by stimulating the activities of their private manufacturing enterprises. The IFC closely cooperates with the World Bank and is its branch. Its activities are managed by the Board of Governors and the Board of Directors, consisting of persons managing the affairs of the IBRD and representing states that are also its members.

International Development Association (MAP)- established in 1960, since 1961 a specialized agency of the UN. Its members are the member states of the IBRD.

The goals of MAP are to promote economic development, increase productivity and living standards of the population of least developed countries by providing them with preferential, interest-free and long-term loans. Responsibility for managing MAP affairs rests with the IBRD, whose officials and staff also perform pro bono functions for managing MAP affairs. The procedure for making decisions on granting loans is the same as at the IBRD.

The three above organizations - the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the International Finance Corporation and the International Development Association - together form a corporation called the World Bank.

International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD or IFAD)— established and operating as a specialized agency of the UN since 1977.

The goals of IFAD are to mobilize additional funds for the development of agriculture in developing countries through the development and implementation of projects to assist the poorest segments of their agricultural population. The capital of the fund is created mainly through contributions from developed countries (more than 50%) and developing countries (more than 40%). Its distribution also depends on the coordination of the positions of the main donor countries.

International Court of Justice

The International Court of Justice (not to be confused with the International Criminal Court!) is the main judicial organ of the United Nations (UN). It was established by the Charter of the United Nations, signed on June 26, 1945 in San Francisco, to achieve one of the main purposes of the UN: “to carry through by peaceful means, in accordance with the principles of justice and international law, the settlement or settlement of international disputes or situations which may lead to a breach of peace." The Court operates in accordance with the Statute, which is part of the Charter, and its Rules of Procedure.

The International Court consists of 15 judges, and there cannot be two of the same state. The members of the Court are elected by the General Assembly and the Security Council from among the persons included in the list at the proposal of national groups of the Permanent Court of Arbitration. Judges are elected on the basis of . However, upon appointment, attention is paid to ensuring that the major legal systems of the world are represented on the Court. A national group may nominate no more than four candidates. Before nominating candidates, it is obliged to seek the opinion of the highest judicial bodies, law faculties, higher legal educational institutions and academies of their country, as well as national branches international academies involved in the study of law. Candidates who receive an absolute majority of votes in the General Assembly and the Security Council are considered elected. Judges are elected to nine-year terms and may be re-elected. While holding the position of judge, they cannot hold another position.

Since the functioning of the Court, a representative of the USSR, and subsequently Russia, has been constantly elected as a member of the International Court.

Members of the Court, when performing their judicial duties, enjoy diplomatic privileges and immunities. The seat of the Court is The Hague, the Netherlands.

The jurisdiction of the Court includes all cases that will be referred to it by the parties, and all matters specifically provided for by the UN Charter or existing treaties and conventions.

Only states and only parties to the Statute of the Court can be parties to a dispute before the Court.. The latter may at any time declare that they accept, without special agreement, ipsofacto, in relation to any other State accepting such an obligation, the jurisdiction of the Court as compulsory in all legal disputes relating to:

1. interpretation of the treaty;
2. any question of international law;
3. the existence of a fact which, if established, would constitute a breach of an international obligation;
4. the nature and extent of compensation due for violation of international obligations.

Such declarations are deposited with the Secretary-General and constitute acceptance of the binding jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice.

The court cannot consider disputes between individuals and legal entities and international organizations.

The court is obliged to resolve disputes submitted to it on the basis of international law, and during the trial it applies:

• international conventions establishing rules expressly recognized by the disputing states;
• international custom as evidence of a general practice recognized as legal norm;
• the general principles of law recognized by civilized nations;
• judicial decisions (binding only on the parties to the case) and the doctrines of the most qualified specialists in public law as an aid to the determination of legal rules.

The Statute of the Court does not limit its right to decide a case exaequoexbono (in fairness and not according to formal law), if the parties agree to this.

The court sits continuously, with the exception of judicial vacations, the terms and duration of which are established by the court.

The Court usually conducts its activities in plenary sessions, but at the request of the parties it can form limited units called chambers. A decision rendered by one of the Chambers is considered to be rendered by the Court itself. Within the framework of the Court, a chamber for the consideration of environmental cases was formed, and a chamber for simplified procedures is formed annually.

The official languages ​​of the Court are French and English. Legal proceedings consist of two parts: written and oral proceedings. Written proceedings consist of the presentation to the Court and the parties of memoranda, counter-memoranda and, if necessary, objections to them, as well as all papers and documents supporting them. Oral proceedings consist of the Court hearing witnesses, experts, representatives, attorneys, and advocates.

The Court's decision is binding only on the parties involved in the case and only on this case. It is final and cannot be appealed. If any party does not fulfill the obligations imposed on it by the Court, then the Security Council, at the request of the other party, may, if it considers it necessary, make recommendations or decide on taking measures to enforce the decision (Article 94, paragraph 2, of the UN Charter ).

In addition to considering a dispute, the Court may give advisory opinions on any legal question at the request of any institution authorized to make such requests by the UN Charter itself or under the Charter. According to the established procedure, four main UN bodies, two subsidiary bodies of the General Assembly, 17 specialized agencies of the UN and the IAEA have the right to request such an opinion from the Court. The court issues its advisory opinions in open court.

Currently, the potential of the International Court is not being fully used. Wider use of the Court would be an important contribution to UN peacekeeping.

Guardianship Council

The UN, under its leadership, created an international trusteeship system to administer and monitor those territories included in it by individual agreements. These territories are called trustee territories.

The trusteeship agreement in each case must include the terms under which the trustee territory will be administered and also define the authority that will administer the trustee territory. Such an authority is called a administering authority and may be one or more states or the UN itself.

The Trusteeship Council, being one of the main organs of the UN, operates under the leadership of the UN General Assembly and assists it in carrying out the functions of the UN regarding the international trusteeship system.

The Guardianship Council reviews reports submitted by the governing authority. It accepts petitions and considers them on their merits. The Council shall arrange periodic visits to the respective territories under trusteeship at periods agreed upon with the administering authority. The UN Charter obliges the Council to take any action in accordance with trusteeship agreements.

The Trusteeship Council includes five permanent members of the Security Council - the Russian Federation, China, France, Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States.

The objectives of the trusteeship system were realized to such an extent that all trust territories achieved self-government and independence - as separate states or by joining neighboring ones independent states. In November 1994, the Security Council decided to terminate the UN Trusteeship Agreement with respect to the last of the original 11 Trust Territories, the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (Palau), administered by the United States. From now on, the Council meets at its sessions only when necessary.

Secretariat

It serves the main and all other organs of the UN and manages their programs. The Secretariat consists of the Secretary-General and staff located at Headquarters and around the world and deals with issues related to the day-to-day activities of the UN.

The UN Secretariat includes 8,900 representatives from approximately 160 countries. As international civil servants, they, like the Secretary-General, are accountable for their activities only to the Organization; each of them takes an oath not to seek or receive instructions from any government or any other authority not connected with the Organization. According to Art. 100 of the Charter, each UN Member State undertakes to respect the strictly international nature of the duties of the Secretary-General and the staff of the Secretariat and not to attempt to influence them in the performance of their duties.

The work of the Secretariat is as diverse as the list of issues that the UN deals with. The Secretariat's responsibilities include different kinds activities: from organizing peacekeeping operations to mediation and resolution of international disputes. Secretariat staff also review global economic trends and issues; conducts research in areas such as human rights and sustainable development; organizes international conferences on issues of global concern; monitors the implementation of decisions taken by the bodies of the Organization; provides interpretation of speeches and translation of documents into official languages Organizations; supplies the world's funds mass media information about the activities of the UN.

The head of the Secretariat is the Secretary-General, and in this capacity he acts at all meetings of the General Assembly, the Security Council, ECOSOC and the Trusteeship Council and performs other functions assigned to him by these bodies. The Secretary-General presents an annual report on the work of the Organization to the General Assembly.

The Secretary-General has the right to bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter which, in his opinion, may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security.

The Secretary-General makes a major contribution to preventing the emergence, escalation or expansion of international disputes, in particular through the exercise of his good offices mission in the interests of preventive diplomacy.

The Secretary-General is appointed by the UN General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council for a five-year term, after which he can be reappointed.

The Secretariat consists of the following divisions: Department of Internal Organizational Affairs; Office of Legal Affairs; Office of Political Affairs; Department for Disarmament Affairs; Department of peacekeeping operations; Office for Humanitarian Affairs Coordination; Department of Economic and Social Affairs; Department of General Assembly and Conference Services; Department of Public Information; Department of Management; Directorate for Iraq Issues; Office of the UN Security Coordinator.

The Office of Legal Affairs assists in the preparation of draft agreements between the UN and other organizations. It provides legal advice on the use of peacekeeping forces; represents the UN in courts and arbitrations in connection with the filing and consideration of claims against the Organization. The Office acts as the coordinator of contacts between legal consultants of UN system organizations and facilitates the coordination of their positions on legal policy issues. On behalf of the Secretary-General, the Office acts as depositary of more than 500 multilateral treaties.

UN Economic and Social Council

ECOSOC is one of the main bodies of the UN. It coordinates the economic and humanitarian activities of the UN, the main directions of which are enshrined in Art. 55 of the UN Charter. In order to create conditions for stability and prosperity, the UN promotes:

• improving living standards, full employment and conditions for economic and social progress and development;
• resolving international problems in the field of economic, social, health and similar problems; international cooperation in the field of culture and education;
• universal respect and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction of race, sex, language or religion.

All UN members undertake to take joint and independent actions in cooperation with the Organization to achieve the goals specified in Art. 55 of the Charter.

Responsibility for fulfilling the functions of the Organization in the field of international economic and social cooperation is assigned by the UN Charter to the General Assembly and, under its leadership, to ECOSOC, which is granted appropriate powers for this purpose.

ECOSOC is vested with the following functions and powers:

1. serve as a central forum for discussing international economic and social issues of a global or cross-sectoral nature and for making policy recommendations on these issues to Member States of the Organization and the United Nations system as a whole;
2. undertake or initiate research, prepare reports and make recommendations on international issues in the economic, social, cultural, educational, health and related fields;
3. promote respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms;
4. convene international conferences and draw up draft conventions for submission to the General Assembly on matters within its competence;
5. negotiate with specialized agencies regarding agreements defining their relationship with the United Nations;
6. harmonize the activities of the specialized agencies through consultation with and advice to them, and through advice to the General Assembly and the Members of the United Nations;
7. provide services approved by the General Assembly to members of the UN, as well as specialized agencies at the request of the latter;
8. consult with relevant non-governmental agencies on matters dealt with by the Council.

ECOSOC consists of 54 UN members elected by the General Assembly; The 18 members of ECOSOC are elected annually for a term of three years. A retiring Council member may be re-elected immediately. The election takes place in the following order: 6 members - from Eastern European states, 13 - from Western European states and other states, 11 - from Asian states, 14 - from African states, 10 - from Latin American states. Each ECOSOC member has one representative.

Membership

All UN member countries are represented in the General Assembly by one vote.

Authority

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 not 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 judges of the International Court of Justice; it also makes decisions on admitting new members to the UN. The Assembly elects 10 non-permanent members. Finally, it determines the contribution of each UN member state to the Organization's budget.

Functions

In addition to regular sessions, the General Assembly operates through a complex structure of committees and regional groups; this allows different governments to be confident that their interests and the priorities of their regions are adequately represented at the UN. These groups also take part in the selection of states that, in accordance with the rotation procedure, will have to join the Security Council.

Sessions

The Assembly holds regular sessions annually, beginning on the third Tuesday in September; the session usually lasts about three months. In addition to regular ones, the Assembly can hold special sessions at the request of the Security Council or the majority of UN members. According to the terms of the “Unity for Peace” resolution (1950), in the event of a threat to peace, the Assembly can meet within 24 hours for an emergency session.

The Assembly annually elects a new chairman, 21 vice-chairmen and the chairmen of the seven main standing committees. The Chairman of the Assembly directs its work through the General Committee.

Basically, decisions at the General Assembly are made 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.

Committees

Like national legislatures, the Assembly is divided into committees. It consists of 7 permanent committees: Special Political Committee; First Committee (Disarmament and Security Affairs); Second Committee (Economic and Financial Affairs); Third Committee (social, humanitarian and cultural issues); Fourth Committee (Trustee Territories and Decolonization Issues); Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary Affairs) and Sixth Committee (Legal Affairs). Each UN member state has the right to be represented on any of these committees.

Story

In the years cold war The United States usually used its own methods of putting pressure on the General Assembly to achieve its goals. Of the 51 states that first joined the UN in 1945, no less than 35 were closely associated with the United States. Even taking into account the fact that two republics of the USSR - Belarus and Ukraine - signed the Charter as separate members, only 5 of the states represented in the UN sided with the USSR and only 10 were considered non-aligned. The newly liberated and colonial countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America had virtually no representation in the Assembly at the time. The US delegation in those years could easily achieve a majority, and, if necessary, a two-thirds majority.

UN members

Australia

Austria 1955

Azerbaijan 1992

Albania 1955

Angola 1976

Andorra 1993

Antigua and Barbuda 1981

Argentina

Armenia 1992

Afghanistan 1946

Bahamas 1973

Bangladesh 1974

Barbados 1966

Bahrain 1971

Belarus

Bulgaria 1955

Bosnia and Herzegovina 1992

Botswana 1966

Brazil

Brunei 1984

Burkina Faso 1960

Burundi 1962

Vanuatu 1981

Great Britain

Hungary 1955

Venezuela

Vietnam 1977

Guyana 1966

Gambia 1965

Guatemala

Guinea 1958

Guinea-Bissau 1974

Germany 1973

Honduras

Grenada 1974

Georgia 1992

Democratic Republic of Congo 1960

Djibouti 1977

Dominica 1978

Dominican Republic

Zambia 1964

Zimbabwe 1980

Israel 1949

Indonesia 1950

Jordan 1955

Ireland 1955

Iceland 1946

Spain 1955

Italy 1955

Cape Verde 1975

Kazakhstan 1992

Cambodia 1955

Cameroon 1960

Kyrgyzstan 1992

Kiribati 1999

People's Republic of China

Colombia

Comoros 1975

Democratic People's Republic of Korea 1991

Republic of Korea 1991

Costa Rica

Ivory Coast 1960

Kuwait 1963

Latvia 1991

Lesotho 1966

Liechtenstein 1990

Luxembourg

Mauritius 1968

Mauritania 1961

Madagascar 1960

Macedonia 1993

Malawi 1964

Malaysia 1957

Maldives 1965

Malta 1964

Morocco 1956

Marshall Islands 1991

Mozambique 1975

Moldova 1992

Monaco 1993

Mongolia 1961

Myanmar 1948

Namibia 1990

Nigeria 1960

Netherlands

Nicaragua

New Zealand

Norway

United Arab Emirates 1971

Pakistan 1947

Papua New Guinea 1975

Paraguay

Portugal 1955

Republic of the Congo 1960

Russian Federation

Rwanda 1962

Romania 1955

Salvador

San Marino 1992

Sao Tome and Principe 1975

Saudi Arabia

Swaziland 1968

Seychelles 1976

Senegal 1960

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1980

Saint Kitts and Nevis 1983

Saint Lucia 1979

Singapore 1965

Slovakia 1993

Slovenia 1992

USA

Solomon Islands 1978

Somalia 1960

Suriname 1975

Sierra Leone 1961

Tajikistan 1992

Thailand 1946

Tanzania 1961

Trinidad and Tobago 1962

Turkmenistan 1992

Uganda 1962

Uzbekistan 1992

Federated States of Micronesia 1991

Philippines

Finland 1955

Croatia 1992

Central African Republic 1960

Sweden 1946

Sri Lanka 1955

Equatorial Guinea 1968

Eritrea 1993

Estonia 1991

Yugoslavia

South Africa

Jamaica 1962

Japan 1956

For the 51 states that signed the Charter in 1945, no date of adoption is given. In 1990-1991, two states from this number - the USSR and Yugoslavia - collapsed. In 1992, Russia was recognized as the successor to the USSR in all UN bodies. In 1973, East and West Germany became members of the UN. The country was reunified in 1990.

On November 29, 1947, the General Assembly adopted Resolution No. 181 concerning the division of the former Mandate Territory of Palestine by creating Arab and Jewish states there. A few months later, the State of Israel was proclaimed, but an Arab state never emerged.

When, in the early days of the UN, it became clear that the Security Council had become hostage to the struggle between East and West, the General Assembly voted to create a General Committee, or Small Assembly, which, if necessary, could meet between sessions of the Assembly. The “Unity for Peace” resolution adopted in 1950 significantly increased the role of the General Assembly. In June, in the absence of the Soviet representative, the Security Council managed to take action against the attack North Korea on South Korea. However, a few days later the representative of the USSR returned to the Security Council and vetoed any further actions. The Uniting for Peace resolution asserted the right of the Assembly to meet immediately in cases 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 the development of 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 crisis in the Congo in 1960. Since decolonization led to expansion of the political base of the Assembly, security issues began to be dealt with mainly by the Security Council.

The United States, as a rule, managed to achieve a majority in the General Assembly when voting on vital issues. In the 1960s and 1970s, the rise of the Afro-Asian-Arab bloc made it 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. In 1971, a vote was taken on the issue of admitting the People's Republic of China: the United States, which opposed it, actually found itself in the minority. But even in 1974, when the Afro-Asian-Arab bloc had a decisive majority of votes, the United States managed to resolve the issue of the presence of North American armed forces in Korea under the UN flag.

Do you know what the UN is? What functions does the General Assembly perform? You will find answers to these and other questions in the article. The UN General Assembly is the leading representative, decision-making and deliberative body of the United Nations, which was established in 1945 in accordance with the UN Charter. The annual session of the Assembly is held from September to December and on subsequent days as necessary. This formation serves as a forum for a diverse discussion of the entire range of interethnic issues reflected in the Charter, and consists of 193 UN members.

Powers and functions

The Assembly also decided to temporarily suspend the tenth special emergency session and authorized the UN President to resume its meetings at the request of member countries.

Backstage meetings

What is an informal meeting of the UN General Assembly? At its 52nd session, the organization proposed a new means of achieving mutual understanding by negotiating the task of transforming the UN in private plenary meetings. The practice of holding such events was proposed at subsequent conferences to discuss issues related to the UN special session on HIV/AIDS, the UN Millennium Summit, strengthening the UN system and its revitalization.

Elections

Next, we will find out why a resolution of the UN General Assembly is needed, and now we will consider the elections of the UN Chairman and his deputies. In 2002, on July 8, the Assembly approved resolution 56/509, according to which the rules of procedure were changed. According to them, and also as a result of intensifying its work, the famous organization elected its own chairman and his deputies in 2005, on June 13, that is, three months before the opening of the conference. At the same time, the chairmen of the first six commissions of the 60th session were elected.

In accordance with UN resolution 58/126, other officers of the leading committees were elected on the same day.

Total debate

In 2005, from 17 to 23 September, debates of the General Assembly were held. They gave member countries a chance to speak out on the most important international issues. According to UN resolution 58/126, the sixtieth conference held for the first time a general debate on a topic proposed to member countries that had been approved but had not yet begun to implement job responsibilities chairman.

Given the importance of the 2005 World Summit, the sixtieth session proposed the theme “in the interest of enhancing and strengthening the effectiveness of the UN: follow-up to the resolutions and activities of the macro-level plenary congress held in September 2005.”

The Secretary General read out a report on the activities of the organization before the start of the general debate, as has been the custom since the 52nd conference.

Reserve bodies

The rights of the UN General Assembly are impressive. This organization has six main commissions. After the end of the general discussion, the Assembly begins to consider the main items on its agenda. The number of subjects she must study is very large. That is why the Assembly sorts the sections of the daily plan among its six main commissions depending on their topics. They, in turn, discuss them, trying, as far as possible, to resolve different relationships states After this, the committees submit draft decisions and resolutions to the Assembly for analysis at one of the plenary congresses.

The UN has the following commissions:

• Committee on International Security and Disarmament.
• Commission on Financial and Economic Affairs.
• Committee on Humanitarian, Social and Cultural Issues.
• Advice on the specific political challenges and dilemmas of decolonization.
• Committee on Budgetary and Administrative Issues.
• Legal Tasks Committee.

It is known that on individual agenda items, such as the problems of Palestine and the Middle East, the Assembly makes verdicts only at its plenary meetings.

Order

So, why is a UN General Assembly resolution necessary? This is a written act of the UN, in the approval of which all members of the Assembly take part. In order for it to be adopted, it must receive at least 50% of the votes.

The decisions recognized by the Assembly, unlike resolutions of the Security Council, do not have binding force, since they are distinguished by a recommendatory bias. However, no state can veto them. They say that UN regulations have great political and moral significance.

The texts of these documents are annually agreed upon between delegations of member states within the framework of the activities of six UN committees.

Current resolutions of the General Assembly, as a rule, study issues of global development (“Poverty eradication”, “Food security”), international activities, phenomena, processes and even simple events (an oil spill in the coastal waters of Lebanon).

The text of the decision reveals the level of perception of the problems being analyzed that is appropriate for all states and the goals of working together to resolve the relevant issues. However, it is not always possible to achieve a fundamental common understanding, as, for example, in the resolution on lifting the blockade from Cuba, which is annually approved by the overwhelming majority of powers, criticizing the antics of the United States. If there are fundamental disagreements between groups of countries or on the part of one state, the resolution is sent to a referendum.

Due to the very one-sided nature of the multifaceted process of negotiations on the text of a resolution with the participation of countries with dissimilar popular needs, UN orders rarely have an oriented practical direction, with the exception of “decisions-resolutions” on real issues (the budget of the organization, the holding of conferences, and so on).

Children's rights

What else is the UN General Assembly famous for? The Convention on the Rights of the Child is her work. This organization approved an interethnic legal document fixing the rights of children in participating countries. This Convention is the first and basic international legal document of a rigorous tone, intended for a wide range of children's rights. It contains 54 articles detailing the private rights of persons from birth to 18 years of age (if, in accordance with applicable laws, legal capacity does not occur earlier) to the perfect development of their resources in an environment free from want, hunger, exploitation, cruelty and other forms of abuse. The parties to this Convention are Palestine, the Holy See and all UN member countries, excluding the United States.

People's rights

Don't you know why the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was created? The UN General Assembly adopted it at the third session by resolution 217 A (III) in 1948, on December 10. This “International Pact on Human Rights” is recommended to all UN member countries. It is the first total definition of the privileges that all people have.

The Declaration consists of 30 articles and is a component of the International Bill of Human Capability, along with the World Covenant on Social, Cultural and Economic Rights, a pair of Optional Protocols, and the World Covenant on Political and Civil Rights.

Idea

Would you like to take a look at the documents of the UN General Assembly? Anyone can familiarize themselves with them, since they are available to everyone online on the website of this organization. During the Age of Enlightenment, thoughts about Natural Law emerged. On their basis, the following were developed and approved: the Bill of Rights in the USA, the Bill of Opportunities in the UK and the Declaration of Citizen and Human Rights in France.

The World War II phase clearly demonstrated the need for a universal treaty on human rights. Franklin Roosevelt in 1941, in his State of the Union address, called for support for four necessary freedoms: conscience, speech, freedom from fear and from want. This gave new impetus to the development of human rights as a necessary criterion for peace and the end of war.

As the public learned about the atrocities committed by the German fascists, it became clear that the UN Charter did not clearly define human rights. A universal agreement that would describe and enumerate individual rights was necessary.

Adoption

The Declaration of the UN General Assembly is an important document that can change the world. It is known that the text of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was subject to significant edits before being approved. The basis for the future document was Humphrey's draft, deeply modified by Cassin.

Voting for him was carried out gradually. 23 of the 31 articles of the declaration program were unanimously adopted. As a result of the discussion, the third paragraph was combined with the second. During the hearings and article-by-article plebiscite, confrontation between Western states and the countries of the Soviet coalition emerged. The head of the USSR delegation to the UN, Andrei Yanuaryevich Vyshinsky, argued that, despite some advantages, the project has many major shortcomings, the main one of which is its legal and formal nature and the absence in the project of any measures that would be able to facilitate the implementation of those proclaimed in the document basic human rights and freedoms.

The latest version of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was approved by 48 countries (out of the 58 then UN members) on December 10, 1948 at the 183rd plenary meeting of the General Assembly in the Palais de Chaillot (Paris). The Ukrainian SSR, the Byelorussian SSR, Czechoslovakia, the USSR, Yugoslavia, Poland, Saudi Arabia and South Africa abstained from voting. Yemen and Honduras did not participate. Canada rejected the first version of the declaration, but agreed with it in the final vote.

Socialist countries rejected the document due to denial of the right to free emigration, Saudi Arabia - due to rejection of freedom of religion and arbitrariness of marriage, South Africa (and previously, Canada) - due to its racist position.

Human Rights Day

The UN General Assembly is bringing big changes to the world. 1948 is a turning point in human history. In 1950, the UN established the holiday Human Rights Day to honor the Declaration. It is celebrated on December 10th. People, parliaments, governments, various religious groups and communities and, of course, the UN itself take part in this celebration. Campaigns to promote the Declaration and human rights are undertaken every ten years.

In 2007, on December 10, Operation Justice and human dignity for all of us,” in which all UN member states took an active part, and lasted exactly one year, until the 60th anniversary.