The United Nations (UN)

The United Nations is founded on 26 June 1945 in San Francisco, as a replacement for the League of Nations, which had clearly failed to fulfil its role, proving incapable of preventing the Second World War. The UN was also intended to provide a new platform for international dialogue.

The UN is divided into several bodies:

•     The General Assembly, in which all member states are represented, each with different responsibilities 
•     The Security Council, which reaches decisions on certain resolutions covering peace and security issues 
•     The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), which promotes economic and social cooperation and facilitates development 
•     The Secretariat, which is responsible for the day-to-day management of the UN 
•     The International Court of Justice (ICJ), which is the organisation’s main judicial body

Other bodies are responsible for a variety of issues, and together they make up the United Nations system. The most visible public face of the UN is the Secretary-General. This post has been held by South Korean Ban Ki-moon since 2007.

In 2011, the UN had 193 member states, that is, almost all of the world’s officially recognised nations. From its headquarters, located on international territory in New York (USA), the UN and its specialist agencies, which are spread across other countries, adopt various resolutions throughout the year on subjects which fall within their area of competence.

The UN is financed by voluntary contributions and by member states. There are six official languages: Arabic, Mandarin, English, French, Russian and Spanish.