ÿþ<html> <head> <title> WHKMLA : History of the Early Cold War : The U.N. </title> <!-- copyright Alexander Ganse, 2001-2008 --> </head> <body bgcolor = "lightgreen"> <div align = "center"> <TABLE border = "0" cellspace="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"> <TR> <TD align = "center" valign = "center"> <A HREF = "../../index.html"> <img src = "../../banner.jpg" border = "0"> </A></TD></TR></TABLE> <TABLE border = "0" cellspace="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"> <TR> <TD width = "150" height = "36" align = "center" valign = "center"> <font size = "2" face = "arial"><B> League of Nations </B></font></TD> <TD width = "36" height = "36" align = "center" valign = "center"> <A HREF = "../betwwar/leagueofnations.html"> <img src = "../../region/arrowleft.gif" width = "36" height = "36" border = "0"> </A></TD> <TD align = "center" valign = "center"> <A HREF = "../latecoldwar/xlcw.html"> <img src = "../topicbanners/apartheidstr.jpg" border = "0"> </A></TD> <TD width = "36" height = "36" align = "center" valign = "center"> <A HREF = "../latecoldwar/un2.html"> <img src = "../../region/arrowright.gif" width = "36" height = "36" border = "0"></A> </TD> <TD width = "150" height = "36" align = "center" valign = "center"> <font size = "2" face = "arial"><B> United Nations (2) </B></font></TD></TR></TABLE> <TABLE border = "0" cellspace="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"> <TR> <TD width = "150" height = "36" align = "center" valign = "center"> <font size = "2" face = "arial"><B> The United States <BR> and Latin America </B></font></TD> <TD width = "36" height = "36" align = "center" valign = "center"> <A HREF = "uslatam.html"> <img src = "../../region/arrowleft.gif" width = "36" height = "36" border = "0"> </A></TD> <TD align = "center" valign = "center"> <A HREF = "xecw.html"> <img src = "../banners/banecw.jpg" border = "0"> </A></TD> <TD width = "36" height = "36" align = "center" valign = "center"> <A HREF = "imf.html"> <img src = "../../region/arrowright.gif" width = "36" height = "36" border = "0"></A> </TD> <TD width = "150" height = "36" align = "center" valign = "center"> <font size = "2" face = "arial"><B> IMF </B></font></TD></TR></TABLE> <BR><BR><BR> <script language="JavaScript"> <!-- function SymError() { return true; } window.onerror = SymError; //--> </script> <script type="text/javascript"><!-- google_ad_client = "pub-0213752126925919"; google_alternate_color = "FFFFE1"; google_ad_width = 728; google_ad_height = 90; google_ad_format = "728x90_as"; google_ad_channel ="4814426207"; google_ad_type = "text"; google_page_url = document.location; google_color_border = "FF3300"; google_color_bg = "FFFFE1"; google_color_link = "0000CC"; google_color_url = "008000"; google_color_text = "6F6F6F"; //--></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script> <BR><BR><BR> </div> <TABLE border = "0" cellspace="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"> <TR> <TD width = "900" align = "center" valign = "center"> <font size = "6" face = "arial"><B> United Nations </B></font> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <BR><BR> <font size = "4" face = "Times Roman"> Well into World War II, the United States, believing the LEAGUE OF NATIONS to have been a failure, promoted the foundation of the UNITED NATIONS as a successor organization, with seats in GENEVA and NEW YORK. The idea was conceived in 1942, the UN CHARTER passed at an assembly held in SAN FRANCISCO in 1945. <BR> The United Nation's most important body was to be the UN SECURITY COUNCIL, with 10 temporary members and 5 PERMANENT MEMBERS, the latter being the representatives of the USA, the USSR, the UNITED KINGDOM, FRANCE and CHINA, each invested with the power to VETO decisions. Not by coincidence, those 5 were the major allies in World War II. The UN was to be represented by a SECRETARY GENERAL, the first person to serve in this function being Norwegien TRYGVE LIE. <BR><BR> The United Nations was intended to become a forum where international disputes could be discussed, a politically neutral forum. In 1948 the UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS was approved by the UN general assembly. In 1948 the UN decided on the future of Palestine, voting in favor of a PARTITION, against the Arab proposal of preserving the unity of Palestine. <BR> In 1950 the UN Security Council, at a time when the Soviet delegate boycotted its meetings, voted to call on its members to come to the aid of South Korea, which had been invaded by the communist north. The UN itself became a combattant, as international forces (the bulk of which US forces) were placed under UN command. <BR><BR> Having its seat in New York, having the US contributing 25 % of its budget, the United Nations were not as neutral as they were supposed to be. In the early years the two German states were not members, neither were the two Korean states - for each of them claimed to solely represent Germany respectively Korea. The PRC also was not member, as China was represented by the Nationalist government of Taiwan. <BR> Decolonization resulted in a huge increase of membership, and in shifting majorities. The US and their traditional allies no longer had a safe majority, the former colonies now could influence decisions. In 1963 a SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON APARTHEID was established; UN resolutions would criticize South African Apartheid, continuing colonialism, Israeli infringements on the rights of Palestinians etc. The UN got engaged in peace negotiations; UN secretary general DAG HAMMARSKJ&Ouml;LD was shot down on a peace mission over the Congo. UN peacekeeping troops would separate belligerents at many hotspots, most notably in the Near East after the SIX DAYS WAR. In 1966 the UN declared South Africa's mandate over South West Africa terminated (South Africa, in defiance of UN decisions, would hold on to it until 1990). <BR> Being less able to control the UN, the US took a more and more disinterested position toward the UN, and began to withhold their financial contributions. <BR><BR><BR><BR> <TABLE border = "3" cellspace="5" cellpadding="5" align="center"> <TR> <TD width = "150" valign = "top" align = "center" bgcolor="#FFFACD"> <font size = "3" face = "Times Roman" color = "#000000"> EXTERNAL <BR> FILES </font></TD> <TD width = "900" valign = "top" align = "left" bgcolor = "#FFFACD"> <font size = "2" face = "Times Roman" color = "#000000"> History of the UN, from <A HREF = "http://www.un.org/Overview/origin.html"><B>un.org</B></A>; from <A HREF = "http://www.un.org/aboutun/history.htm"><B>un.org</B></A> <BR> Milestones in UN History, from <A HREF = "http://www.un.org/Overview/milesto4.htm"><B>un.org</B></A> <BR> Biography of Trygve Halvdan Lie, Secretary General 1946-1953, from <A HREF = "http://www.un.org/Overview/SG/sg1bio.html"><B>un.org</B></A> <BR> Biography of Dag Hammarskj&ouml;ld, Secretary General 1953-1971, from <A HREF = "http://www.un.org/Overview/SG/sg2bio.html"><B>un.org</B></A> <BR> Biography of U Thant, Secretary General 1961-1971, from <A HREF = "http://www.un.org/Overview/SG/sg3bio.html"><B>un.org</B></A> <BR> Articles <A HREF = "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations"><B>United Nations</B></A>, <A HREF = "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_United_Nations"><B>History of the United Nations</B></A>, from Wikipedia <BR> </font></TD> </TR></TABLE> <TABLE border = "3" cellspace="5" cellpadding="5" align="center"> <TR> <TD width = "150" valign = "top" align = "center" bgcolor="#FFFACD"> <font size = "3" face = "Times Roman" color = "#000000"> DOCUMENTS </font></TD> <TD width = "900" valign = "top" align = "left" bgcolor = "#FFFACD"> <font size = "2" face = "Times Roman" color = "#000000"> UN General Assembly <A HREF = "http://www.un.org/documents/resga.htm"><B>Resolutions since 1946</B></A>; <A HREF = "http://www.un.org/documents/"><B>Documents</B></A> <BR> </font></TD> </TR></TABLE> <TABLE border = "3" cellspace="5" cellpadding="5" align="center"> <TR> <TD width = "150" valign = "top" align = "center" bgcolor="#FFFACD"> <font size = "2" face = "Times Roman" color = "#000000"> REFERENCE </font></TD> <TD width = "900" valign = "top" align = "left" bgcolor = "#FFFACD"> <font size = "2" face = "Times Roman" color = "#000000"> </font></TD> </TR></TABLE> <BR><BR><BR> <TABLE border="5" cellspace="10" cellpadding="10" align="center" bgcolor="#FFFFFF"><TR> <TD width="480" valign="top" align="center"> <font size = "3" face = "Times Roman" color = "#000000"><i>This page is part of <B>World History at KMLA</b></i></font><BR> <font size = "2" face = "Times Roman" color = "#000000"><i>First posted on July 16th 2001, last revised on August 19th 2008</i></font> <BR><BR> <font size = "2" face = "Times Roman"> Click here to go <A HREF = "../../index.html">Home</A> <BR> Click here to go to <A HREF = "../../about.html">Information about KMLA, WHKMLA, the author and webmaster</A> <BR> Click here to go to <A HREF = "../../links.html">Statistics</A><BR> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR><BR><BR> </DIV> <DIV align="center"> <A href="mailto:aganse@hotmail.com"> <IMG src="../../email.gif" border="0"></a><BR> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <!-- Start of CH Counter --> <script type="text/javascript"> //<!-- // chCounter v2.0.0 // settings: cstatus = "active"; visible = "0"; path_to_counterfile = "http://www.zum.de/whkmla/counter/counter.php"; urlhp = "http://www.zum.de"; //////////////// url = unescape(location.href); file = url.substring(url.lastIndexOf(urlhp) + urlhp.length, url.length); file = (file.charAt(0) != "/") ? 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