UNITED NATIONS

The United Nations is an organization that focuses on
developing and enforcing international laws and policies.
The main goals of the UN are to achieve peace, social
progress and economic development. The organization
was founded after the end of World War II in 1945 as a
way of replacing the failing League of Nations. There
are currently 192 nations that are a member of the
United Nations, and this includes all sovereign nations
in the world except the Vatican. The Headquarters of the
United Nations is located in New York City in the United
States; the current President is Li Baodong of China.
The UN has several assemblies. The General Assembly
is the main body of the UN and meets yearly. Each
session lasts several weeks. During the first two weeks,
all members are given the opportunity to address the
assembly and bring items to the attention of the board.
The General Assembly also votes on important issues. A
two-thirds majority is needed in order to approve a law,
an election or expulsion of a member.
The Security Council is a division of the United Nations
whose goal is to maintain peace between nations. This
is the only council with the power to make binding
decisions which the members must carry out. All other
councils can only make recommendations. Fifteen
nations have members on the Security Council. Five of
these are permanent and ten are temporary. China,
Russia, France, the United Kingdom and the United
States are the only permanent members.
The International Court of Justice is a division of the
United Nations that is responsible for international trials
and legal decisions. Its headquarters are located in the
Netherlands. This court has heard cases of war crimes,
ethnic cleansing and the like. The International Criminal
Court is a division that began operation in 2002. This
court judges those who have tried to commit war crimes
and genocide across several nations and have violated
international law in doing so.
The United Nations also includes several specialized
agencies that work on particular issues. For example,
the World Health Organization is dedicated to improving
the health status of those in impoverished nations and
ensuring that nations provide adequate health care for
their citizens.
Funding for the United Nations comes from voluntary
donations by member nations. The General Assembly is
responsible for overseeing the budget and determining
the capacity of each nation to pay based on their gross
domestic product, or GDP. Less developed nations are
asked to contribute less and instead advised to use
their resources to improve the status of their nations.
Debating the Effectiveness of the United Nations
In recent years, participants in the United Nations
debate have questioned the organization’s
effectiveness. Those who criticize the organization often
feel that the small administrative structure undermines
the UN's peace keeping mission. Also, there are few
repercussions in place for nations that do not follow
mandates. Permanent members of the Security Council
have been known to avoid mandates themselves
because they cannot lose their status as members as
easily. Still, many people believe that the United Nations
provides a great basis for international relationships.
Though the organization was founded over 50 years
ago, it is still able to oversee the international court
system and bring justice to many dangerous criminals.
Without the United Nations, the world would be a very
different place.