United Nations

Intergovernmental organization with worldwide membership established to promote international peace and security. The United Nations (UN) is a multilateral institution that helps to establish international norms of conduct and harmonious relations. It promotes national self-determination and mutual understanding and cooperation between countries.

Unlike other organizations and institutions, the United Nations is a forum in which large states and small states can connect on an equal footing. Large states gain recognition as important pillars of international peace and security and can shape policy. Small states that are interested in diplomacy but cannot afford to support embassies in every country, gain access to decision makers from other nations. Moreover, states have a forum in which to address universal issues, build coalitions, and instigate worldwide change.

History of the United Nations

During World War II, the United States, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and China began shaping an agreement for a postwar intergovernmental organization that would succeed the weak League of Nations. They created the major forms of the organization—its aims, structure, and framework—at the Dumbarton Oaks Conference in Washington, DC, in 1944. The new organization would help all nations resist another conflict that plunged the world into war by fostering economic, social, and diplomatic cooperation. Fifty nations completed the agreements forming the United Nations on June 26, 1945, concluding the United Nations Conference on International Organization in [Page 751]San Francisco. The United Nations Charter was ratified on October 24 (now United Nations Day).

The Cold War

Despite the spirit of cooperation that led to the formation of the United Nations, relations between the United States and the Soviet Union deteriorated quickly after World War II. For the next 45 years, the two powers would compete for global influence politically, militarily, and economically. During this period, known as the Cold War, the United Nations was often unable to function as an effective force for peace. The permanent members of the UN Security Council—China, France, Great Britain, the United States, and the Soviet Union—frequently vetoed actions within their spheres of influence. For example, the Vietnam War was left out of UN security discussions.

Nevertheless, the United Nations did take some significant actions and began defining its scope beyond the charter. It authorized the use of international force for the first time in the Korean War, calling for UN member states to assist South Korea in repelling the North Korean invasion. The mission, conducted largely under U.S. direction, was successful and South Korea remained independent. The UN mission in Afghanistan in the late 1980s accomplished what it set out to do: negotiating a withdrawal of Soviet troops. However, it did not end the fighting between local Afghan factions, nor did it help create lasting stability in Afghanistan.

The United Nations achieved a few notable successes toward the end of the Cold War. The principle of collective security was applied successfully for the first time when a UN force helped repulse Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1991, preserving Kuwait's sovereignty. The UN Transition Assistance Group (UNTAG) in Namibia supervised a cease-fire in that nation, promoted stability, and helped the country reach full independence.

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