Rights of States

Question 1

Explain section 2.1 of the UN Charter and the right it confers to States.

Answer 1

Section 2.1 relates to the principle of sovereign equality. This means that all member states are equal to each other regardless of size, military power, population or governance.

Question 2

Explain section 2.4 of the UN Charter and the two rights it confers to States.

Answer 2

Section 2.4 relates to two rights that States have:

Territorial integrity: This means that member states have the right to maintain their geographic territory, and cannot have force used against their territory to compromise borders.

Political independence: This means that member states have the right to govern their people without political interference from other member states.

Question 3

Explain section 2.7 of the UN Charter and the freedom it confers to States.

Answer 3

Section 2.7 gives States the right to freedom from UN intervention: This means that the UN cannot intervene in any matters of the domestic jurisdiction of any member states.

Question 4

List four rights that member States of the UN have under the UN Charter.

Answer 4

• Sovereign equality
• Territorial integrity
• Political independence
• Freedom from UN intervention