Topic – 1(Purposes and Principal)!.
A Discuss the purpose and principles of UNO[12]
Article 1
The Purposes of the United Nations are:
To maintain international peace and security, and to that end: to take effective collective measures for
the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression or
other breaches of the peace, and to bring about by peaceful means, and in conformity with the
principles of justice and international law, adjustment or settlement of international disputes or
situations which might lead to a breach of the peace;
To develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and
self-determination of peoples, and to take other appropriate measures to strengthen universal peace;
To achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social,
cultural, or humanitarian character, and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and
for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion; and
To be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations in the attainment of these common ends.
Article 2
The Organization and its Members, in pursuit of the Purposes stated in Article 1, shall act in
accordance with the following Principles.
The Organization is based on the principle of the sovereign equality of all its Members.
All Members, in order to ensure to all of them the rights and benefits resulting from membership,
shall fulfil in good faith the obligations assumed by them in accordance with the present Charter.
All Members shall settle their international disputes by peaceful means in such a manner that
international peace and security, and justice, are not endangered.
All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the
territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the
Purposes of the United Nations.
All Members shall give the United Nations every assistance in any action it takes in accordance with
the present Charter, and shall refrain from giving assistance to any state against which the United
Nations is taking preventive or enforcement action.
The Organization shall ensure that states which are not Members of the United Nations act in
accordance with these Principles so far as may be necessary for the maintenance of international
peace and security.
Nothing contained in the present Charter shall authorize the United Nations to intervene in matters
which are essentially within the domestic jurisdiction of any state or shall require the Members to
submit such matters to settlement under the present Charter; but this principle shall not prejudice the
application of enforcement measures under Chapter VII.
Principles:
To fulfill the objectives for which it was established, the United Nations acts in accordance with the
following principles as set for in Article 2 of the Charter.
1. The organization is based on the principle of sovereign equality of allots members.
2. All members hall fulfill in good faith the obligations they assumed under the
Charter.
3. They shall settle their international disputes by peaceful means.
4. They shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force in
any manner inconsistent with the objectives of the United Nations.
5. They shall give the United Nations every assistance in any action it takes in
accordance with the Chatter, and to refrain to give any assistance to any state against
which the UN is taking preventive or enforcement action.
6. The noted Nation is to ensure that non-members act in accordance with these
principles so far is necessary for maintaining international peace and security.
7. The UN shall not intervene in matters essentially within the domestic jurisdiction
of any State. This provision shall not however, prejudice the application of any
enforcement action with respect threats to the peace, breaches of peace and acts of
aggression.
(b) Name the principal organs of UNO. 4
Principal organs of the United Nations
The united nations have six principal organs that were established when the United Nations was
founded. The Principal organs are:
General Assembly
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) is headquartered in New York and all the
member states of the United Nations have equal representation. The member states gather to
discuss various issues relating to international law, security, peace, etc
Security Council
The Security Council has the responsibility to maintain international peace and security whenever
peace is threatened. It constitutes 15 members, having one vote each and a residency rotating and
changing every month.
Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
The ECOSOC promotes sustainable development with regard to economic, social and
environmental matters. It comprises of 54 members that are elected by the General Assembly.
Trusteeship Council
the Trusteeship Council is dealt with under Chapter XII of the UN Charter. It was established in
order to supervise the 11 Trust Territories that were placed under the administration of 7 member
states. The Council suspended its activities in the year 1994. All territories are now
independent.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ)
The International Court of Justice (also called the world’s court) established by the United
Nations Charter in the year 1945. The ICJ is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations
having its headquarters at Hague, Netherland being the only organ among the six organs of the
UN to be not situated in New York (USA). It consists of a panel of 15 judges for a term of nine
years. The judges are elected by the General Assembly and the Security Council. ICJ succeeded
the Permanent Court of International Justice. It resolves disputes between the member states of
the UN.
United Nations Secretariat
The UN Secretariat comprises of a Secretary-General who is appointed by the General Assembly
on the Security Council’s recommendation. Other members of the Secretariat are appointed by
the Secretary-General as per the regulations of the General Assembly. The Secretariat carries out
the day to day work of the UN such as preparing the report, making analysis, research, etc that the
General Assembly and other principal organs have mandated.
The United Nations Charter
While drafting the Charter of the United Nations, the experiences and practices of the League of
Nations were mostly relied upon. The UN Charter is a document that sets forth the principles to
be followed by the organization and its members.
What are the main purposes and principles of United Nations Organization?
[16]
History of the United Nation
The Atlantic Charter (1941)
After the failure of the League of Nations and when World War II started, a dire need for a new
organization for promoting international peace was felt. The Atlantic Charter was a Joint
Declaration issued by two leaders American President Roosevelt and British Prime Minister
Churchill in 1941. Initially, the word ‘United Nations’ was used by President Roosevelt and it
indicated the countries that are allied against Germany, Japan, and Italy. On 1st January 1942, 26
nations signed the Declaration at Washington DC stressing their adherence to the principles of the
Atlantic Charter.
Dumbarton Oaks Proposal (1944-1945)
A meeting was held at Dumbarton Oaks for the formation of the United Nations, where the
principles of the organization were laid down. On 7th October 1944, a proposal was submitted by
the Big Four (China, Great Britain, USSR, and the United States) regarding the structure of the
world organization to all the UN Governments. But, there was still disagreement on the question
of voting in the Security Council. For this purpose, Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met at a
conference at Yalta and on 11th February 1945 announced that the question was resolved and
summoned the San Francisco Conference.
On the 25th of April 1945, the leaders gathered at the San Francisco Conference (United Nations
Conference on International Organization) to determine the final structure of the United Nations
Charter. On 24th October 1945, the 5 permanent members and other signatory nations ratified the
official UN Charter.
Principal organs of the United Nations
The united nations have six principal organs that were established when the United Nations was
founded. The Principal organs are:
General Assembly
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) is headquartered in New York and all the
member states of the United Nations have equal representation. The member states gather to
discuss various issues relating to international law, security, peace, etc
Security Council
The Security Council has the responsibility to maintain international peace and security whenever
peace is threatened. It constitutes 15 members, having one vote each and a residency rotating and
changing every month.
Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
The ECOSOC promotes sustainable development with regard to economic, social and
environmental matters. It comprises of 54 members that are elected by the General Assembly.
Trusteeship Council
the Trusteeship Council is dealt with under Chapter XII of the UN Charter. It was established in
order to supervise the 11 Trust Territories that were placed under the administration of 7 member
states. The Council suspended its activities in the year 1994. All territories are now
independent.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ)
The International Court of Justice (also called the world’s court) established by the United
Nations Charter in the year 1945. The ICJ is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations
having its headquarters at Hague, Netherland being the only organ among the six organs of the
UN to be not situated in New York (USA). It consists of a panel of 15 judges for a term of nine
years. The judges are elected by the General Assembly and the Security Council. ICJ succeeded
the Permanent Court of International Justice. It resolves disputes between the member states of
the UN.
United Nations Secretariat
The UN Secretariat comprises of a Secretary-General who is appointed by the General Assembly
on the Security Council’s recommendation. Other members of the Secretariat are appointed by
the Secretary-General as per the regulations of the General Assembly. The Secretariat carries out
the day to day work of the UN such as preparing the report, making analysis, research, etc that the
General Assembly and other principal organs have mandated.
The United Nations Charter
While drafting the Charter of the United Nations, the experiences and practices of the League of
Nations were mostly relied upon. The UN Charter is a document that sets forth the principles to
be followed by the organization and its members.
Purposes and Principle
Chapter I of the Charter lays down the purposes and principles of the United Nations.
Article 1 of the UN Charter
Article 1 of the 1 UN Charter talks about the purposes of the United Nations. They are:
Maintaining international peace and security;
Developing friendly relations amongst the nations;
Achieving international cooperation to solve international issues of social, economic, cultural or
humanitarian nature;
Being a centre to harmonize the actions of the state to accomplish these common goals.
The main objective of these purposes was binding the organization and its members to coordinate
their activities in order to accomplish these common goals.
Article 2 of the UN Charter
Article 2 talks about the principles of the United Nations. These principles are:
Ensuring sovereign equality of all its members. This rule implies that all the members of the UN
have equal representation.
All the members of the UN are required to fulfil in good faith the obligations assumed by them in
accordance with the Charter.
All the members of the UN are obliged to settle their disputes by peaceful and amicable means in
such a manner as to not endanger or jeopardize international peace, security, and justice.
All the members of the UN are required to desist from giving treats or using force over and
against any states’ territorial integrity or political independence.
All the members of the UN are required to abstain from helping or assisting any state against
which the UN is taking preventive actions or enforcement actions.
Ensuring that non-members do not act inconsistently with the Charter. This rule empowers the
United Nations in order to maintain peace and security to enforce obligation in the non-members
of the state. Further, a non-member state as per Article 35(2) is empowered to bring any dispute
before the General Assembly or the Security Council.
Non-interference of the United Nations in matters relating to the domestic jurisdiction of any
state. This rule mandates the United Nations not to interfere where the matter is solely of
domestic jurisdiction of a state.
Nicaragua v. the United States
In this case, Nicaragua alleged that the United States carried illegal military and paramilitary
operations against Nicaragua by supporting and assisting the Contras causing an extensive
loss of lives by attacking its mining ports, naval base, air space, etc. It was also alleged that
certain attacks were done not by the Contras but by the United States itself.
The claims of Nicaragua was that
the United States has violated Article 2(4) of the Charter of the United Nations to ‘refrain from
threat and use of force’ and has breached the customary international law obligation.
The actions of the United States amounted to an interference with the internal affairs of
Nicaragua.
The ICJ, in this case, held that the United States has violated international law by involving itself
in the unlawful use of force against Nicaragua.
Article 51 of the UN Charter: Maintenance of peace
Article 51 empowers the United Nations Security Councils to take measures regarding the
maintenance of peace and security. Article 51 provides that the member states have an inherent
right of self-defence (individually or collectively) to defend any armed attack against a member
of the UN. A member state has to immediately report to the Security Council if it has taken any
measures for the exercise of its self-defence.
It further provides that the Security Council’s authority and responsibility can not be affected to
take any action that is necessary for the restoration and maintenance of international peace and
security.
Article 13(1) of the UN Charter
Article 13(1) empowers the General Assembly to initiate studies and make recommendations to:
Promote international cooperation in the political, social, cultural, educational, economic, and
health fields.
Encourage progressive development of international law and codification of international laws.
Assist in the realization of Human Rights and fundamental freedom for all.
Non-discrimination on the basis of race, sex, language, religion.
Article 24, 25 and 26 of the UN Charter
Chapter V of the UN Charter deals with the functions and power of the Security Council under
Article 24 and 25 of the Charter.
Article 24 states that:
The members of the United Nations confers a primary responsibility upon the Security Council of
maintaining peace and security for ensuring a prompt and effective action by the UN.
The Security Council while discharging these duties is obliged to act in accordance with the
purpose and principles of the UN.
The Security Council is required to submit to the General Assembly the annual and special report
for its consideration.
Article 25 makes the members of the United Nations accept and carry out the decisions of the
Security Council in accordance with the Charter”.
Under Article 26 the Security Council with the aid and assistance of the Military Staff Committee
is responsible to formulate plans that are to be submitted to the members for establishing a system
for regulation of armaments. Further, the security council is required to do so with the slightest
diversion for armaments of human and economic resources of the world.
The United Nations was formed with the motive to find ways to maintain worldwide peace. Since
its inception, it has been helping nations deal with the economics, social and humanitarian issues,
protecting refugees promoting sustainable development and more.
Topic- 2 The International Court of Justice
2) a) Write down the jurisdiction and function of the world court or ICJ. (8)
The International Court of Justice is the judicial body of the United Nations. The
International Court of Justice is one of the 6 primary bodies of the United Nations.
The ICJ headquarters is located in Hague, Netherlands. The International Court
of Justice is also the only UN body to not have its headquarters in the city of New
York, unlike the five others.
Here are some other important facts to know about the ICJ:
The UN Charter of 1945 marks the establishment of the International Court of
Justice. In 1946, it became functional and replaced the Permanent Court of
International Justice (PCIJ), which had been instituted in 1922.
There were 193 members of the UN, which automatically became parties to the
ICJ as well. Article 93 suggests a procedure for countries to become a member of
the International Court of Justice even if they are not part of the UN.
The ICJ’s official languages are English and French.
Functions of the International Court of Justice
International Court of Justice is sometimes called the ‘World Court’, owing to its
position as the judicial center for all international issues and disputes. The primary
function of the International Court of Justice is to resolve disputes that are
submitted to them by countries. They provide these resolutions in accordance with
international law.
The ICJ is advisory in nature and hence, cannot reinforce its judgments on the
countries. However, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has the
authority to enforce these verdicts, as suggested by the UN Charter. The
permanent members of the UN exercise veto power to such rulings.
The International Court of Justice is an important body of the UN. It functions in
different ways:
The ICJ is the world’s court and operates with a two-fold model of jurisdiction.
It settles disputes between countries that have submitted their issues to them.
The International Court of Justice is also responsible for providing legal advice
submitted by the UN organs and special agencies.
Jurisdiction of the ICJ
ICJ acts as a world court with two fold jurisdiction i.e. legal disputes between
States submitted to it by them (contentious cases) and requests for advisory
opinions on legal questions referred to it by United Nations organs and
specialized agencies (advisory proceedings).
Only States which are members of the United Nations and which have
become parties to the Statute of the Court or which have accepted its
jurisdiction under certain conditions, are parties to contentious cases.
States have no permanent representatives accredited to the Court. They
normally communicate with the Registrar through their Minister for Foreign
Affairs or their ambassador accredited to the Netherlands.
When they are parties to a case before the Court they are represented by an
agent. Since international relations are at stake, the agent is also as it were the
head of a special diplomatic mission with powers to commit a sovereign
State.
The judgment is final, binding on the parties to a case and without appeal (at
the most it may be subject to interpretation or, upon the discovery of a new
fact, revision).
By signing the Charter, a Member State of the United Nations undertakes to
comply with the decision of the Court in any case to which it is a party.
A State which considers that the other side has failed to perform the
obligations incumbent upon it under a judgment rendered by the Court may
bring the matter before the Security Council, which is empowered to
recommend or decide upon measures to be taken to give effect to the
judgment.
The procedure described above is the normal procedure. However, the course
of the proceedings may be modified by incidental proceedings.
ICJ discharges its duties as a full court but, at the request of the parties, it
may also establish ad hoc chambers to examine specific cases.
Advisory proceedings before the Court are only open to five organs of the
United Nations and 16 specialized agencies of the United Nations family or
affiliated organizations.
The ICJ has two types of jurisdictions:
Contentious cases
The ICJ follows international law to settle legal disputes that have been submitted
to them by the states.
The application of the cases precedes the hearing of the cases.
The recognition of the ICJ’s jurisdiction is vital for any court proceedings to
follow.
The Court’s judgment is final and binding on the parties. It doesn’t have the option
to make an appeal.
Advisory opinions
This particular procedure is viable for the 5 UN bodies, 16 specialized bodies, and
their associated affiliations.
There is a legal weight to the court’s verdicts, even when they aren’t legally
binding.
There is also a classification between mainline and incidental jurisdictions.
Incidental Jurisdiction: This is related to matters of miscellaneous and
interlocutory nature. For instance, the Court’s power to decide a dispute and its
jurisdiction in a specific case, the Court’s authority over the proceedings, etc.
Mainline Jurisdiction: This concerns itself with the power extended by the court,
the binding nature of the verdict, etc.
Composition of the International Court of Justice
There is a total of 15 judges in the International Court of Justice, each selected
to serve a term of nine years by the UN General Assembly and the Security
Council. The judges are allowed to be re-elected. Elections are held every three
years when one-third of the cabinet retires.
These 15 judges are distributed demographically and geographically;
Three judges come from Africa
Two judges from Latin America and the Caribbean
Five judges come from Western Europe and other states
Three judges from Asia
Two from Eastern Europe
For the successful election of a judge in the ICJ, there must be an absolute majority
for a candidate in both organs of the UN.
The ICJ is not comprised of diplomats/representatives of different States like all
international organizations. The judges in the ICJ are independent judges who
take an oath for the fair use of their judicial powers to make impartial decisions.
For the complete independence of the judiciary, the dismissal of the judges can’t
happen unless there is a unanimous vote from the other members of the Court. This
has never happened in the history of ICJ.
Limitations of the International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice has some limitations which are mostly structural,
circumstantial, and/or related to the availability of material resources to the Court.
The International Court of Justice has no jurisdiction over individuals who are
accused of crimes against humanity and war crimes. It is not a criminal court and
hence, it cannot have a prosecutor to initiate proceedings.
National courts can’t turn to the ICJ as it is not an Apex court. It also is not a court
that can serve as a last resort for countries. It is not an appeal court but can give
rulings on the validity of the arbitration awards.
International Court of Justice does not have suo moto provisions and hence,
cannot take up cases on will and has to be requested to do so by the States. It has
no powers to investigate or rule on acts.
The ICJ’s jurisdiction is consensual and cannot be exercised on countries that don’t
accept it.
There is no complete separation of powers as the Security Council’s permanent
members can always veto the verdicts.
B. How are the judges of the I.C.J. elected?
After reaching a deadlock, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and United
Nations Security Council (UNSC) reached a conclusion on Tuesday, declaring Justice
Dalveer Bhandari victorious with 183-193 votes in the United Nations General Assembly and
all 15 votes in the Security Council.
Established in 1945 by the Charter of the United Nations, the International Court of Justice
(ICJ) is seated in Hague, the Netherlands and constitutes of 15 judges who are elected by the
United Nations General Assembly and Security Council for a term of nine years. Apart from
the 15 judges, a President and a Vice-President is elected by the Court through a secret ballot
for a term of three years.
For purposes of measuring continuity, one-third of the Court is elected every three years by
the two UN bodies and during this course, judges are eligible for re-election. In case of a
death or resignation before the completion of term, another judge is elected for the remaining
term.
When and where are the elections held?
Election of the judges is held in New York during the annual autumn season of the General
Assembly. Judges elected after every three years start their term of office from February 6
and the election for the President and the Vice-President takes place post election of the one-
third court.
Who nominates the candidates?
Every state government, party to the Charter, designates a group who propose candidates for
the office of ICJ judges. This group includes four members/jurists of the Permanent Court of
Arbitration (machinery which enables arbitral tribunals to be set up as desired and facilitates
their work) also picked by the State.
Countries not part of the statute follow the same procedure where a group nominates the
candidates.
Each group is limited to nominate four candidates, two of whom could be of their nationality.
Within a fixed duration set by the Secretary-General, the names of the candidates have to be
sent to him/her.
How are the ICJ judges elected?
Both organs of the UN, the General Assembly and the Security Council vote at
the same time but separately. A judge is elected once it receives an absolute
majority of the two organs due to which the voting takes place in several
rounds.
C. Evaluate the present role of I.C.J [4]
Book
Topic – 3, (Security Council)
4) a) Discuss the composition and function of Security Council. (12)
Composition and Function of UN Security Council
The UN Security Council was established in 1946 under the UN Charter and is responsible
for the maintenance of international peace and security. It is one of six principal organs of the
UN and is generally viewed as the apex executive of the UN system.
Composition of UN Security Council
The Security Council is composed of fifteen UN member States, five of which are
permanent members -- United States, the United Kingdom, France, the Russian
Federation, and China. The permanent members have the power to ‘veto’ a
substantive decision of the Council by voting against it. The veto is cast much less
often now than it was during the Cold War, but it is still very much in use as a threat
which blocks Council action.
The other ten members of the Council are elected by the General Assembly to two-year
nonrenewable terms, with five new members elected each year. The ten elected members,
known in Charter language as "non-permanent members," are selected according to a
distribution formula from each of the world's major regions. The Security Council meets
formally in both private and public sessions. The meetings normally take place in the
Security Council Chamber at UN headquarters in New York and there the Council votes on
resolutions and conducts other official business. The Security Council meets occasionally in
private, mainly to decide on its recommendation of a candidate for the position of the UN
Secretary-General. Since 1990, the Council has conducted most of its business in private
"consultations" (informal and off-therecord meetings) which are held on most weekdays
during the year. Meetings are chaired by the powerful President, an office that rotates each
month on an alphabetical basis among the Council's membership.
In addition to recommending the name of new secretaries-general, the Council recommends
new State members of the UN, and it elects judges to the International Court of Justice,
jointly with the General Assembly. In the key realm of peace and security, it performs three
main functions. It assists in the peaceful settlement of disputes. It establishes and oversees
UN peace-keeping forces. And it takes enforcement measures against recalcitrant States or
other parties.
Function of UN Security Council
The Security Council of the United Nations has primary responsibility under the UN Charter
for the maintenance of international peace and security, and its resolutions are binding on all
member states. During the first forty-five years of its existence, the Council was largely
paralysed by the Cold War, but since 1990 and the thawing of the global political climate, it
has been very active.
Acting under Chapter VI of the Charter, the Council ‘shall, when it deems necessary, call
upon the parties’ to a dispute to settle it by peaceful means such as negotiation, mediation,
conciliation, arbitration, or judicial settlement (Article 33). And it may, if all the parties to a
dispute request, make recommendations to the parties with a view to a peaceful settlement
(Article 38). In practice, the Council often asks the Secretary-General or one of his Special
Representatives to mediate or negotiate under guidelines the Council has established.
Increasingly the Council members themselves have travelled to conflict areas in an effort to
directly negotiate settlements or mediate conflicts.
Though the first UN peace-keeping force was established by the General Assembly,
subsequent forces have been established by the Security Council, which exercises authority
and command over them. The Council delegates to the Secretary-General its powers to
organize and to exercise command and control over the force, but it retains close
management and oversight -- too much so in the view of many Secretariat officials and
military commanders. Though the Charter does not expressly provide powers to the Council
for peace-keeping forces, the International Court of Justice in a 1962 case found that the
Council has an implied power for this purpose.
Peacekeeping forces are usually deployed by the Council only after ceasefires have been
agreed upon and so the peacekeepers are only lightly armed and should not be confused with
an army fighting an opposing force. In the post-Cold War period, with greater consensus
among its members, the Council has established far more peacekeeping operations than in the
past. At a peak in the mid-1990s there were over 70,000 peacekeepers deployed. Some large
and complex operations not only include soldiers but also civilian police, election monitors,
de-mining and demobilization experts, and civilian administrative personnel.
The Security Council may also take enforcement measures which are more robust than
peacekeeping. These enforcement powers are contained in Chapter VII of the Charter, which
authorises the Council to determine when a threat to, or breach of, the peace has occurred,
and authorises it among other things to impose economic and military sanctions.
The ‘peace’ referred to in Article 39 may involve conflicts other than those between states. At
the time the Charter was established, it was envisaged that conflicts within the borders of a
state could also constitute a threat to or breach of the peace, and thus that the Council could
order the use of enforcement measures. The Council has broadened its definition of these
cases over time, so that gross violations of human rights may now be seen as a threat to the
peace, as was the case with the genocide in Rwanda.
In exercising its enforcement powers, the Security Council has imposed economic sanctions
against a number of States and other parties. The great majority of these sanctions regimes
have been imposed in the post-Cold War period. The Council imposed general trade
sanctions on Iraq in 1990, but since then the Council has preferred to imposed more
"targeted" sanctions such as arms embargoes, travel bans, restrictions on diplomatic relations,
and bans on key commodities like petroleum and diamonds
Under Article 42 of the Charter, the Security Council has the power to order the use of force
to maintain or restore peace and security. However the collective use of force as a military
sanction does not operate in the way originally intended. It was envisaged that States would
conclude agreements with the United Nations, enabling the Council to require troop
contributions to create and carry out military enforcement operations. Due to the Cold War
this procedure was not implemented, and more recently there has not been the political will to
return to the original intentions of the Charter
Nonetheless the Security Council has delegated its Chapter VII powers to member States who
volunteer their forces to carry out the enforcement action. These delegations of power include
a delegation of a power of command and control over such forces, usually to those
volunteering. Recently, the Council has delegated its enforcement powers to NATO in certain
Balkan conflicts, to a force assembled by the Economic Community of West African States
in Liberia and Sierra Leone, and to a multinational force led by Australia in East Timor.
These are sometimes referred to as "coalitions of the willing." The best-known case is the
coalition led by the United States that assembled under Resolution 678 in response to Iraq's
invasion of Kuwait in 1990
The Council has delegated its Chapter VII powers to member States for the attainment of
various objectives including to counter a use of force, to carry out a naval interdiction against
a state, to achieve humanitarian objectives, to protect UN declared 'safe areas,' and to ensure
implementation of a peace agreement. Member states are often less than satisfied with the
results of these operations, which are frequently seen as reflecting the interests of the
powerful states taking part, and not sufficiently reflecting the will of the Council or the
international community as a whole. But as long at the United Nations is relatively weak and
short of resources, such compromises in the face of urgent crises are likely to continue.
States and non-state actors have made a wide variety of proposals concerning potential
reform of the work, size, and composition of the Security Council. Concerning size and
composition, the General Assembly adopted resolution 48/26 in 1993 which established an
Open-ended Working Group to ‘consider all aspects of the question of increase in the
membership of the Security Council’. The non-permanent membership of the Security
Council has already been enlarged once in 1965 from six to its present ten. However any
changes in the membership of the Security Council requires an amendment of the Charter
which can only take place with the consent of ‘all the permanent members’. As such, it is
highly unlikely that any formal changes concerning membership of the permanent members
or their veto powers will be adopted.
India’s Demand for Permanent Membership
India deserves to be in the list of permanent members not only because of the one-sixth
world’s population that resides in India but because of the following reasons:
1. Being a founding member of the UN, India has always respected, participated and
supported the United Nations.
2. India is not only funding the UN substantially, but it is also leading the peacekeeping
operations of the UN; upholding the principles & credentials of the UN.
3. India is a major emerging economic power & follows an independent foreign policy,
which signifies India’s stand on any issue on multinational forum.
