Section 7 - the UN Flashcards
What does it take to become admitted to, expulsed or suspended from the UN?
For admission, expulsion, or suspension of membership requires vote of ⅔ of GA and recommendation of UNSC
= What are the general objectives and principles of the UN?
General objectives
- Maintenance of international peace and security
- Promotion of human welfare
General principles
- Sovereign equality of states
- Peaceful settlement of disputes
- Non-interference in domestic affairs
- Respect for international law
What are the 6 organs of the UN?
General Assembly
Security Council
Economic and Social Council
Trusteeship Council (suspended since 1994)
Internatioanl Court of Justice
Secretariat
What are the main roles of the UNGA?
Forum of debate
Election of members of other UN organs
Development of IL
What is the UNSC’s main roles?
Peaceful settlement of disputes
Enforcement measures
What kind of pronouncements can the UNSC make?
Recommendations – non-binding
Decisions – legally binding
What is the judicial organ of the UN?
The ICJ
What voting rule is used in the UNGA?
Sovereign equality.
Voting in the Assembly is governed by article 18, which stipulates that each member has one vote only, despite widespread disparities in populations and resources between states, and that decisions on ‘important questions’, including the admission of new members and recommendations relating to international peace and security, are to be made by a two-thirds majority of members present and voting
For how long is the UNSG elected, and what role do they serve?
5 years, a renewable term.
Agenda setting, honest broker –> Rainbow warrior case
What are different ways the UN can go about a pacific settlement of a dispute? (Chapter 6)
Both via judicial or political organs
- ICJ → binding decisions
- Security Council
- Raising a case
- Actions under Chapter VI - General Assembly → recommendations
- Secretary-General → mediation
What are some collective security and peace enforcement systems in the UN (Ch 7)?
- The concept of Collective Security (≠ self-help)
- Security Council, two kinds of enforcement measures
1. No use of armed force (Art. 41)
2. Use of armed force (Art. 42) - Establishment of ad hoc international criminal tribunals
What to articles of the UN Charter can the UNSC invoke for peace inforcement
- No use of armed force (Art. 41) first, and if deemed inadequate
- Use of armed force (Art. 42)
What are the goals of peacekeeping and how are they set up?
They are neutral, lightly armed troops w the goal of making a fragile peace endure. They are typically set up by the SC, and sometimes the GA
What are the four purposes of the UN set up in Article 1 of the Charter?
- To maintain international peace and security, and to that end, to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression or other breaches of the peace, and to bring about by peaceful means, and in conformity with the principles of justice and international law, adjustment or settlement of international disputes or situations which might lead to a breach of the peace;
- To develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, and to take other appropriate measures to strengthen universal peace;
- To achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural or humanitarian character, and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion; and
- To be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations in the attainment of these common end
What is the Charter of the UN?
The Charter of the United Nations is not only the multilateral treaty which created the organisation and outlined the rights and obligations of those states signing it, it is also the constitution of the UN, laying down its functions and prescribing its limitation