Issue 146

A crash course in... the UN

09th October 2006

The United Nations (UN) is an international body dedicated to promoting peace and understanding throughout the world. Formed in 1945 by the winners of the second world war the UN is essentially a "parliament of nations", where delegates can meet to discuss their differences and find a non-violent solution to their problems. Should conflict be unavoidable the Security Council, which consists of five permanent members and ten elected, can vote on whether or not to use sanctions, send in peacekeepers, or use full blown military force to intervene.

The five permanent members are the United States, The United Kingdom, The Russian Federation, China and France; the victorious nations of the second world war. The use of full military force has so far been restricted to the Korean War from 1950 to 1953. The Security Council is essentially the highest level at which diplomacy can take place.

The UN is run by the secretariat in over 170 offices around the world, with its headquarters in New York, one of the most instantly recognised buildings in the world. The current secretary general is Koffi Annan, who has recently been dogged by controversy following the oil for food scandal in 2003. Elections are to be held soon in order to choose a new secratary general as Koffi Annan's time in office draws to a close at the end of this year.

Dan Shaw