1. Origins of United Nations
War, Peace and the United Nations
Origins of United Nations

2. Pair-Share What do you know about the United Nations?
If you don’t know much about the United Nations, what do you think it is based upon the name itself?
Do this in the KWL!

3. United Nations Overview

4. Before the UN: League of Nations
League of Nations, an organization conceived during the First World War and established in 1919 under the Treaty of Versailles “to promote international cooperation and to achieve peace and security.”
Due, in part, to the fact that the United States refused to join, the League of Nations was never able to carry out its intended mission.

5. Steps Leading Up to UN Creation
The leaders of the Allies met during the spring and summer of 1945 to discuss what should happen to the world once World War Two ended.
Many issues were addressed regarding how to end the war with Japan, rebuilding the war-torn countries, and what could be done to prevent World War Three.

6. Pair-Share
Why do you think it took the devastation of World War Two for universal support of a peace-keeping body?

8. The Birth of the United Nations
June 26, representatives of 50 countries sign the charter of the United Nations at a conference in San Francisco
UN officially comes into existence on 24 October now celebrated as United Nations Day

9. 1945: The United Nations
The United Nations Charter states the goals and purposes of the organization:
To maintain international peace and security
Develop friendly relations among nations
To be a center for harmonizing the actions of nations in attaining these common ends

10. Structure and Organization of United Nations

12. The Structure of the UN
Security Council: responsible for peace, has 15 members
General Assembly: main deliberative forum of the UN has 191 members
The UN Secretariat headed by the Secretary General
UN Economic and Social Council
International Court of Justice based in The Hague, Holland

13. Other Parts of the United Nations

14. International Court of Justice
The seat of the Court is at the Peace Palace in The Hague (Netherlands).
It is the only one not located in New York (United States of America).
The Court’s role is to settle, in accordance with international law, legal disputes submitted to it by States and to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by authorized United Nations organs and specialized agencies.

15. Look at the United Nations Flowchart.
Pair-Share
Look at the United Nations Flowchart.
Which of the different bodies of the United Nations do you think are the most important and why?
Select your top three and explain your reasoning.

16. UN Security Council

17. UN Security Council The real power rests with the Security Council.
The Security Council discusses and votes on major security issues facing the UN.
It is charged with keeping world peace and may vote to take action against a member nation or non-member nation in order to keep the peace and protect lives at risk.

18. If there is still no progress the Security Council can authorize military action
Recognized by their Blue Helmets

19. UN Security Council
The Security Council has five permanent members:
United States
United Kingdom
France
Russia
China.
10 other countries elected for two year terms
The countries that currently sit on the Security Council for a two year term are: Angola, Chad, Chile, Jordan, Lithuania, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Spain, and Venezuela.

20. Pair-Share
What do you notice about the five permanent members of the Security Council?
What do you notice about the current ten rotating members of the Security Council?

21. Pair-Share
What do you think are the strengths of the Security Council?
What do you think are the weaknesses of the Security Council?

22. What power does the 5 permanent members of the Security Council have that the other Security Council members do not have ?
VETO

23. The Weakness of the UN System in Enforcing Peace
Veto power: the UN can only take serious action when all the “policemen” agree:
“Decisions of the Security Council shall be made by an affirmative vote of nine members including the concurring votes of the permanent members”
Made the UN virtually powerless during the Cold War
Hungary in 1956
Vietnam War
The exception was Korea in 1950.

24. In more than 50 years, the UN Security Council has only authorized military action in the following cases
Korea
Somalia
Bosnia
Gulf War
In all these cases different countries have undertaken military action with the permission of the UN.
The UN itself has not gone to war

25. Peace-Keeping

26. UN Peacekeeping Operations
The UN has no military force of its own, and is dependent on other countries to provide military forces
The UN Charter requires countries to maintain a certain part of their forces for the use of the UN. This has never been done
Instead of representing the world, the UN is often pushed into becoming an instrument of its most powerful members