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The organization operates through its
six major organs. They are the General Assembly, the Security Council,
the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International
Court of Justice, and the Secretariat. Each is represented by a delegation
of not more than five representatives.
The General Assembly
The General Assembly is composed of all the member nations. Its members
meet annually at UN headquarters in New York City. Because the General
Assembly can discuss and make recommendations on any matter within
the scope of the charter, it has been called the "town meeting of
the world." Its specific duties include the election of the members
of the Economic and Social Council, the board of the UN Industrial
Development Organization, and some members of the Trusteeship Council.
With the Security Council, it elects the judges of the International
Court of Justice. The General Assembly appoints the UN Secretary-General
on recommendation of the Security Council. It adopts rules governing
the administration of the Secretariat, approves the United Nations
budget, and decides how much money each member nation should pay to
run the organization. Decisions in the General Assembly may be made
by a simple majority vote or, on important questions, by a two-thirds
vote. Smaller nations have a great deal of influence in the General
Assembly because each country casts one vote.
The Security Council
The UN Charter established a Security Council made up of the five
nations that in 1945 were considered the most powerful in the world.
The council's primary function was to maintain international peace
and security. The five permanent member nations are the United States,
the Russian Federation (in place of the former Soviet Union), the
United Kingdom, France, and China. The UN Charter requires that
the permanent members agree on all decisions made by the council (except
for questions of procedure). Therefore, if even one permanent member
vetoes (rejects) a council decision, that decision is defeated.
In addition to its five permanent members, the Security Council has
10 nonpermanent members that serve two-year terms. (Each year the General
Assembly elects five new nations.) These 10 member nations are chosen
from all over the world in order to ensure fair representation of
all regions. The Security Council is considered always in session.
This means that each council nation must have a permanent representative
at headquarters in New York, so the council can meet on short notice.
The Economic and Social Council
The Economic and Social Council works under the general guidance and
control of the General Assembly. It is composed of 54 member nations
that serve three-year terms (18 members are elected per year). There are
no permanent members of this council. But it has been customary for
the nations of major economic importance, such as the United States
and the Russian Federation, to be re-elected. The council deals with
major economic and social concerns, such as economic development,
land reform, and control of narcotics. The council also coordinates
the policies and activities of the United Nations as well as the various
specialized agencies.
The Trusteeship Council
The Trusteeship Council was established to help the General Assembly
supervise the administration of territories placed under trusteeship.
These territories were primarily former colonies of European nations.
All the territories originally placed under United Nations trusteeship
are now independent. The council, composed of the five permanent members
of the Security Council, meets as circumstances demand.
The International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice is the principal judicial organ
of the United Nations. It is composed of 15 judges elected to nine-year
terms by the General Assembly and the Security Council. The judges
are elected based on their qualifications rather than their nationalities.
However, no nation may have more than one judge on the court at any
given time. The International Court meets at The Hague in the Netherlands.
The court has two major jobs. It settles disputes submitted by nations
for final decision, and it gives advice to other UN organs and agencies.
Its advisory opinions do not have to be accepted, although they carry
great weight. Its judgments, however, are supposed to be followed
by all the parties to disputes submitted to the court.
The Secretariat
The Secretary-General heads up the Secretariat, the administrative
organ of the UN The Secretary-General may bring any matter to the
Security Council that seems likely to endanger international peace.
The General Assembly and the Security Council, as well as the other
two councils, may give the Secretary-General special duties to perform.
The staff of the Secretariat is appointed by the Secretary-General
under rules approved by the General Assembly. The staff must be international—that
is, each one of the many member nations must be represented. However,
member governments are not allowed to influence the staff. In general
the UN Charter emphasizes that the Secretariat of the United Nations
should be an international civil service, serving the interests of
the organization and only those interests.
Leland Goodrich
Author, The United Nations
Copyright © 2002 Grolier Incorporated. All Rights Reserved.
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