Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
13.4 The United Nations (Part I) - Coggle Diagram
13.4 The United Nations (Part I)
2. UN General Assembly room
When an item is brought up for a vote in the General Assembly, each member nation has only one vote.
All of the member countries are equal no matter how small or large they may be in comparison to other members of the Assembly.
On normal procedural matters, a simple majority is all that is needed to pass a motion. On substantial matters of great importance, a two-thirds majority is needed to pass a motion.
Any nation may choose to abstain from voting on a motion if they wish.
3. The Security Council
It works to try to settle disputes among member nations and help to prevent or resist aggression of one nation against another.
The Council is made up of representatives from fifteen different member nations. Each member of the Council has one vote.
Five of the larger nations of the world—the United States, Great Britain, the Soviet Union (Russia), China, and France—are called the “Big Five” and have permanent seats on the Security Council.
Any one of the Big Five can prevent the Council from taking action by using its veto power to say no to a motion with a single vote.
The remaining ten seats of the Security Council are temporary. Representatives to these seats are elected every two years by the General Assembly.
Once a nation has had a seat on the Council, it cannot be reelected to that seat in the next election. This allows more of the member nations to be involved in the Council’s work.
4. How to solve a dispute
When a dispute is brought to the Security Council, the members usually ask a number of questions of the parties involved. With the consent of the nations involved, the Council can send UN representatives out to investigate and gather more information.
After the dispute had been discussed sufficiently, the Council usually urges the nations involved to try to work out their own solution first.
Sometimes the Council may choose to appoint mediators to help in the negotiations between the member nations.
The Council may even suggest some kind of compromise. If there are legal questions involved, the issue may be sent to the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, for a decision.
1. The Charter called upon member nations to agree to four basic principles:
The member nations needed to work together to maintain peace and security
Members needed to promote equal rights and the self-determination of people around the world
Members needed to work at developing international cooperation
Member nations needed to encourage respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms without regard to race, sex, language, or religion.