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#CARD:UNITED NATIONS:BACKGROUND NOTES
BACKGROUND NOTES:  UNITED NATIONS
PUBLISHED BY THE BUREAU OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS
US DEPARTMENT OF STATE

OCTOBER 1992
Official Name:  United Nations

PROFILE

Established: By charter signed in San Francisco, California, on
June 26, 1945; effective October 24, 1945.

Purposes:  To maintain international peace and security; to
develop friendly relations among nations; to achieve
international cooperation in solving economic, social, cultural,
and humanitarian problems and in promoting respect for human
rights and fundamental freedoms; to be a center for harmonizing
the actions of nations in attaining these common ends.

Members: 178.

Official languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian,
Spanish.  Principal organs: General Assembly, Security Council,
Economic and Social Council, Trusteeship Council, International
Court of Justice, Secretariat. Budget: UN assessed budget
(calendar year 1991)--$1.2 billion.  US share--$298 million.  In
calendar 1991, the United States paid its full assessment of $1.1
billion to the United Nations, its agencies, and other
international organizations, including UN peace-keeping
operations, voluntary contributions for other UN organizations
such as UNICEF, and $25 million for UN refugee programs.

Secretariat
Chief Administrative Officer: Secretary General of the United
Nations, appointed to a 5-yr. term by the General Assembly on the
recommendation of the Security Council. Secretary General:
Boutros Boutros-Ghali.

Staff: A worldwide staff of 23,000, including more than 2,800 US
citizens.  The staff is appointed by the Secretary General
according to UN regulations.

General Assembly

Membership: All UN members. President: Elected at the beginning
of each General Assembly session.

Main committees: First--Political and Security, primarily
disarmament; Special Political Committee. Second--Economic and
Financial. Third--Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural.
Fourth--Trusteeship. Fifth--Administrative and Budgetary.
Sixth--Legal. Many other committees address specific issues,
including peace-keeping, outer space, crime prevention, status of
women, and UN Charter reform.

Security Council
Membership: Five permanent members (China, France, Russia, UK,
US), each with the right to veto, and 10 non-permanent members
elected by the General Assembly for 2-year terms. (In December
1991, Russia assumed the permanent Security Council seat
previously held by the USSR.) Five non-permanent members are
elected from Africa and Asia combined; one from Eastern Europe;
two from Latin America; and two from Western Europe and other
areas. Non-permanent members are not eligible for immediate
reelection. The 1992 non-permanent members are Austria, Belgium,
Cape Verde, Hungary, Japan, Morocco,  Venezuela , Ecuador, India,
and Zimbabwe.

President: Rotates monthly in English alphabetical order of
members.

Economic and Social Council
Membership: 54; 18 elected each year by the General Assembly for
3-year terms. President: Elected each year.

Trusteeship Council
Membership: China, France, Russia, UK, US.

President: Elected each year.

International Court of Justice
Membership: 15, elected for 9-year terms by the General Assembly
and the Security Council from nominees of national groups under
provisions of the International Court of Justice Statute.

BACKGROUND
The immediate antecedent of the United Nations was the League of
Nations.  It was created under US leadership following World War
I (although the United States never became a member).  The League
existed from 1919 until its reduced organization and functions
were replaced by the United Nations in 1945.

The idea for the United Nations found expression in declarations
signed at conferences in Moscow and Tehran in October and
December 1943.  In the summer of 1944, representatives of the
USSR, the UK, and the United States met at Dumbarton Oaks, a
mansion in Washington, DC.  Later, discussions among China, the
UK, and the United States resulted in proposals concerning the
purposes and principles of an international organization, its
membership and principal organs, as well as arrangements to
maintain international peace and security and international
economic and social cooperation.  These proposals were discussed
and debated by governments and private citizens worldwide.

On March 5, 1945, invitations to a conference to be held in San
Francisco in April were issued by the United States on behalf of
itself, China, the USSR, and the UK to 42 other governments that
had signed the January 1, 1942, "Declaration by United Nations"
and that had declared war on Germany or Japan no later than March
1, 1945.  The conference added Argentina, Denmark, and the two
republics of Belarus and the Ukraine, bringing the total to 50.

The 50 nations represented at San Francisco signed the Charter of
the United Nations on June 26, 1945.  Poland, which was not
represented at the conference but for which a place among the
original signatories had been reserved, added its name later,
bringing the total of original signatories to 51.  The United
Nations came into existence 4 months later, on October 24, 1945,
when the Charter had been ratified by the five permanent members
of the Security Council--China, France, the USSR, the UK, and the
United States--and by a majority of the other signatories.

UN membership is open to all "peace-loving states" that accept
the obligations of the UN Charter and, in the judgment of the
organization, are able and willing to fulfill these obligations.
Admission to membership is determined by the General Assembly
upon recommendation  of the Security Council.  In September 1991,
there were 166 members.  By August 1992, 179 countries were
members of the UN.  In September 1992, however, the General
Assembly,  by a vote of 127 to 6 with 26 abstentions,  revoked
Yugoslavia's membership, reducing the total to 178.

In New York City, the UN owns its headquarters site , which is
international territory.  The UN headquarters building was
constructed between January 1, 1949, and August 21, 1950, beside
the East River on donated land.  Under special agreement with the
United States, certain diplomatic privileges and immunities have
been granted, but generally the laws of New York City, New York
State, and the United States apply.

SECURITY COUNCIL
Under the UN Charter, the Security Council has "primary
responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and
security," and all UN members "agree to accept and carry out the
decisions of the Security Council in accordance with the present
Charter."

Other organs of the United Nations make recommendations to member
governments.  The Security Council, however, has the power to
make decisions, which member governments must carry out under the
Charter.  A representative of each Security Council member must
always be present at UN headquarters so that the Council can meet
at any time.

Decisions in the Security Council on all substantive matters--for
example, a decision calling for direct measures related to the
settlement of a dispute--require the affirmative votes of nine
members, including the support of all five permanent members.  A
negative vote--a veto--by a permanent member prevents adoption of
a proposal that has received the required number of affirmative
votes.  Abstention is not regarded as a veto.  A permanent member
usually abstains when it does not wish to vote in favor of a
decision or to block it with a veto.

A state that is a member of the UN but not of the Security
Council may participate in Security Council discussions in which
the Council agrees that the country's interests are particularly
affected.  In recent years, the Council has interpreted this
loosely, enabling many countries to take part in its discussions.
Non-members routinely are invited to take part when they are
parties to disputes being considered by the Council.

Although the UN Charter gives the Security Council primary
responsibility for international peace and security, it
recommends that states first make every effort to settle their
disputes peacefully, either bilaterally or through regional
organizations.

Under Chapter Six of the Charter, "Pacific Settlement of
Disputes," the Security Council "may investigate any dispute, or
any situation which might lead to international friction or give
rise to a dispute."  The Council may "recommend appropriate
procedures or methods of adjustment" if it determines that the
situation might endanger international peace and security.  These
recommendations are not binding on UN members.

Under Chapter Seven, the Council has broader power to decide what
measures to be taken in situations involving "threats to the
peace, breaches of the peace, or acts of aggression."  In such
situations, the Council is not limited to recommendations but may
take action, including the use of armed force, "to maintain or
restore international peace and security."  This was the basis
for UN armed action in Korea in 1950 and the use of coalition
forces in Iraq and Kuwait in 1991.

In the case of Iraq, the Security Council adopted 12 resolutions
in 1990 that clearly laid out the path of peace for that country
to follow.  Those resolutions demanded that Iraq withdraw
immediately and unconditionally from Kuwait, established an
economic embargo against Iraq backed by force, and authorized the
use of "all means necessary" to expel Iraqi armed forces from
Kuwait if the Iraqis did not withdraw by January 15, 1991.  When
the Iraqis did not withdraw, the international coalition of
forces launched Operation Desert Storm at 4:50 pm Eastern
Standard Time on January 16 to force Iraq into complying with the
12 UN Security Council resolutions.  As a result of that joint
military operation, the Iraqi armed forces were expelled from
Kuwait.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY
The General Assembly is made up of all 178 UN members.  Member
countries are seated in English alphabetical order.  Each year,
seating begins at a point in the alphabet determined through a
drawing.

 The Assembly meets in regular session once a year under a
president elected from among the representatives.  The regular
session usually begins on the third Tuesday in September and ends
in mid-December.  Special sessions can be convened at the request
of the Security Council, of a majority of UN members, or, if the
majority concurs, of a single member.  There have been 14 special
sessions of the General Assembly.  The 10th special session, in
1978, constituted the largest inter-governmental  conference on
disarmament in history.

Voting in the General Assembly on important
questions--recommendations on peace and security; election of
members to organs; admission, suspension, and expulsion of
members; trusteeship questions; budgetary matters--is by a
two-thirds majority of those present and voting "yes" or "no."
Abstentions are not counted.  Other questions are decided by a
simple majority vote.  Each member country has one vote.

Apart from approval of budgetary matters, including adoption of a
scale of assessment, Assembly resolutions are not binding on the
members.  It may make recommendations on any questions or matters
within the scope of the UN except matters of peace and security
under Security Council consideration.

As the only UN organ in which all members are represented, the
Assembly has been the forum in which members have launched major
initiatives on international questions of peace, economic
progress, and human rights.  It may initiate studies and make
recommendations to promote international political cooperation;
develop and codify international law;  realize human rights and
fundamental freedoms; and further international economic, social,
cultural, educational, and health programs.

The Assembly may take action if the Security Council is
unable--usually due to disagreement among the five permanent
members--to exercise its primary responsibility for the
maintenance of international peace in a case involving an
apparent threat to the peace, breach of peace, or act of
aggression.  The "Uniting for Peace" resolutions, adopted in
1950, empower the Assembly, if not already in session, to convene
in emergency special session on 24-hour notice and to recommend
collective measures--including the use of armed force in the case
of a breach of the peace or act of aggression.  Two-thirds of the
members must approve any such recommendation.  Emergency special
sessions under this procedure have been held on nine occasions.
The eighth emergency special session, in September 1981,
considered the situation in Namibia.  The situation in the
occupied Arab territories, following Israel's unilateral
extension of its laws, jurisdiction, and administration to the
Golan Heights, was the subject of the ninth emergency session in
January and February 1982.

Recently, the Assembly has become a forum for the North-South
dialogue--the discussion of issues between industrialized nations
and developing countries.  These issues have come to the fore
because of the phenomenal growth and changing makeup of the UN
membership.  Smaller countries that achieved independence after
the UN's creation have caused a massive shift in the Assembly.
In 1945, the United Nations had 51 members: now more than
two-thirds of its 178 members are developing countries.

There are many differences in wealth, size, and outlook among the
developing countries.  Nevertheless, this large group (some 120
countries in the General Assembly), known as "the Third World,"
the "non-aligned," and the "Group of 77," has generally voted and
acted in concert.  Because of their numbers, they tend to
determine the agenda of the Assembly, the character of its
debates, and the nature of its decisions.  For many developing
countries, the United Nations is particularly important.  It is
the collective source of much of their diplomatic influence and
the basic outlet for their foreign relations initiatives.
Increasingly, they seek inclusion in the councils of power, and
the UN provides such a policy forum.

The UN has devoted significant attention to the problems of the
developing countries, in response to their growing political
importance in multilateral arenas.  The General Assembly has
guided, and in many cases created, special programs to help
developing nations acquire the skills, knowledge, and
organization they need for more productive economies.  These
programs complement the work of the various specialized agencies
in the UN system.  Through its economic committee, the Assembly
remains concerned with the question of economic development.
Economic and Social Council

The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) assists the General
Assembly in promoting international economic and social
cooperation and development. ECOSOC has 54 members, 18 of whom
are selected each year by the General Assembly for a 3-year term.
A retiring member is eligible for immediate reelection--the
United States, France, the UK, and the USSR have been members
since the UN was founded.  ECOSOC has held two major sessions
each year: a spring meeting, usually in New York, and a summer
meeting, usually in Geneva, but now is merging  the two sessions
into one 7-week session, alternating locations between New York
and Geneva.  The president is elected for a 1-year term. Voting
is by simple majority.

ECOSOC undertakes studies and makes recommendations on
development, world trade, industrialization, natural resources,
human rights, the status of women, population, narcotics, social
welfare, science and technology, crime prevention, and other
issues.
Trusteeship Council.

The UN trusteeship system was established to help ensure that
non-self-governing territories were administered in the best
interests of the inhabitants and of international peace and
security.  The Trusteeship Council operates under the authority
of the General Assembly or, in the case of strategic trusts, the
Security Council.  It assists those bodies in carrying out their
responsibilities under the UN Charter.

A UN member administering a trust territory is pledged to promote
the political, economic, and educational advancement of the
territory's people.  It also promotes "progressive  development
towards self-government or independence as may be appropriate to
the particular circumstances of each territory and its people and
the freely expressed wishes of the peoples concerned."

As recently as 1957, 11 territories--most of them former mandates
of the League of Nations or territories taken from enemy states
at the end of World War II--were part of the UN trusteeship
system.  All but one have attained self-government or
independence, either as separate nations or by joining
neighboring independent countries.

The only one remaining is the Trust Territory of the Pacific
Islands (TTPI), designated as a strategic area and administered
by the United States under a 1947 agreement with the Security
Council.  On May 28, 1986, the Trusteeship Council determined
that the United States had fulfilled its obligations as trustee
and asked it to make arrangements for trusteeship termination by
September 30, 1986, according to the new status arrangements
negotiated with TTPI governments and ratified by their peoples in
UN-observed acts of self-determination.

As a result of these arrangements, the Republic of the Marshall
Islands  and the Federated States of Micronesia  became
sovereign, self-governing states in free association with the
United States.  A third TTPI entity, the Northern Mariana
Islands, had become a self-governing US commonwealth in 1986.  On
December 22, 1990, the Security Council confirmed the Trusteeship
Council's action in Resolution 683.  A fourth TTPI entity, the
Republic of Palau, remains subject to the Trusteeship Agreement.
The United States and Palau have negotiated a Compact of Free
Association, under which Palau would have a status comparable to
that of the Marshall Islands and Micronesia.  Efforts to bring
the compact into effect have been thwarted, however, by failure
to obtain the approval of 75% of Palau's voters in order to
reconcile nuclear provisions of the compact with non-nuclear
provisions of the Palauan Constitution.

 Membership of the Trusteeship Council consists of the United
States--the only country now administering a trust territory--and
the other permanent members of the Security Council--China,
France, the UK, and Russia.International Court of Justice

The International Court of Justice is the principal judicial
organ of the UN.  The Court was established under the Charter in
1945 as the successor to the Permanent Court of International
Justice.  Its main functions are to decide cases submitted to it
by states and to give advisory opinions on legal questions
submitted to it by the General Assembly or Security Council, or
by such specialized agencies as may be authorized to do so by the
General Assembly in accordance with the UN Charter.

The seat of the Court is in The Hague, Netherlands. It is
composed of 15 judges elected by the General Assembly and the
Security Council from a list of persons nominated by the national
groups in the Permanent Court of Arbitration.  Electors are
mandated to bear in mind the qualifications of the candidates and
the need for the Court as a whole to represent the main cultural
groups and principal legal systems.  No two judges may be
nationals of the same country.  Judges serve for 9 years and may
be reelected.  One-third of the Court (five judges) is elected
every 3 years.

Questions before the Court are decided by a majority of judges
present.  Nine judges constitute a quorum. In case of a tie, the
president of the Court casts the deciding vote.  In certain
circumstances, parties may be entitled to request a specific
judge for a specific case.

Only states may be parties in cases before the International
Court of Justice.  This does not preclude private interests from
being the subject of proceedings if one state brings the case
against another.  Jurisdiction of the Court is based on the
consent of the parties.  The United States accepted the Court's
compulsory jurisdiction in 1946 but withdrew its acceptance
following the Court's decision in the Nicaragua case in 1986.

In the event of a dispute concerning the Court's jurisdiction,
the matter is settled by the Court.  Judgments are binding upon
the parties.  The Security Council can be called upon by a party
to determine measures to be taken to give effect to a judgment if
the other party fails to perform its obligations under that
judgment.  Examples of cases include:


 -- A dispute between Greece and Turkey over the boundary of the
continental shelf in the Aegean Sea;

 -- A complaint by the United States in 1980 that Iran was
detaining American diplomats in Tehran in violation of
international law;

 --  A dispute between Tunisia and Libya over the delimitation of
the continental shelf between them;

 --  A dispute over the course of the maritime boundary dividing
the United States and Canada in the Gulf of Maine area; and

 --  A complaint brought by Nicaragua against the United States
concerning military and paramilitary activities.

Secretariat.
The Secretariat is headed by the Secretary General, assisted by a
staff of about 10,000 international civil servants worldwide.  It
provides studies, information, and facilities needed by UN bodies
for their meetings.  It also carries out tasks as directed by the
Security Council, the General Assembly, the Economic and Social
Council, and other authorized UN bodies.  The Charter provides
that the staff be chosen by application of the "highest standards
of efficiency, competence, and integrity," with due regard for
the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geo-graphical
basis as possible.

The Charter also provides that the Secretary General and staff
shall not seek or receive instructions from any government or
authority other than the United Nations.  Each UN member is
enjoined to respect the international character of the
Secretariat and not seek to influence its staff.  The Secretary
General alone is responsible for the staff selection.

The Secretary General's duties include helping resolve
international disputes, administering peace-keeping operations,
organizing international conferences, gathering information on
the implementation of Security Council decisions, and consulting
with member governments regarding various international relations
initiatives.  The Secretary General may bring to the attention of
the Security Council any matter that, in his or her opinion, may
threaten international peace and security.

In 1977, the General Assembly created a new position in the
Secretariat--a Director General for Development and Economic
Cooperation.  The incumbent, second only to the Secretary
General, works to obtain better efficiency and coordination of
the many economic and developmental programs operating within the
UN system.

THE UN FAMILY
In addition to the 6 principal UN organs, the UN family includes
nearly 30 major programs or agencies.  Some were in existence
before the UN was created and are related to it by agreement.
Others were established by the General Assembly.  Each
specialized agency provides expertise in a specific area.  Some
of the important agencies are discussed below.

 International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).  Headquartered in
Vienna, Austria, the IAEA seeks both to promote the peaceful
application of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for military
purposes.  The IAEA's programs encourage the development and
transfer of the peaceful application of nuclear technology,
provide international safeguards against its misuse, facilitate
the application of safety measures in its use, and help to ensure
the environmentally safe disposal of nuclear waste.

International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).  Headquartered
in Montreal, Canada, ICAO develops the principles and techniques
of international air navigation and fosters the planning and
development of international air transport to ensure safe and
orderly growth.  The ICAO Council adopts standards and
recommended practices concerning air navigation, prevention of
unlawful interference, and facilitation of border-crossing
procedures for international civil aviation.  Currently, the
United States is actively involved in the adoption and bringing
into force of an ICAO-sponsored multilateral convention to ensure
that manufacturers of plastic explosives insert chemical
additives to make the explosives detectable by screening devices
at airports.

International Labor Organization (ILO).  Headquartered in Geneva,
Switzerland, ILO is unique among international organizations
because of its tripartite character:  National delegations
consist of representatives from government, management, and
labor.  US delegations are comprised of representatives from the
federal government, the AFL-CIO, and the US Council for
International Business.  ILO seeks to strengthen worker rights,
improve working and living conditions, create employment, and
provide information and training opportunities.  ILO programs of
direct benefit to the United States include the occupational
safety and health-hazard-alert system and the labor standards and
human rights programs.

International Maritime Organization (IMO).  Headquartered in
London, England, IMO promotes cooperation among governments and
the shipping industry to improve maritime safety and to prevent
marine pollution.  A significant IMO accomplishment was the
adoption in 1986 of a set of measures, drafted by the United
States following the 1985 hijacking of the Achille Lauro, to
protect passengers and crews on board ships.  IMO has also played
a major role in coordinating global response to major oil spills.
In November 1990, in reaction to the Exxon Valdez oil spill and
in response to the 1989 Group of Seven economic summit in Paris,
a new international convention on oil pollution preparedness and
response was completed and opened for signature.

Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, UNHCR protects and supports
refugees at the request of a government or the UN and assists in
their return or resettlement.  UNHCR was awarded the Nobel Peace
Prize in 1954 and 1982.


UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Headquartered in New York City, UNICEF is headed by a US
executive director and provides long-term humanitarian and
developmental assistance to children and mothers in developing
countries.  A voluntarily funded agency, UNICEF relies on
contributions from governments and private donors.  Its programs
emphasize developing community-level services to promote the
health and well-being of children.  UNICEF was awarded the Nobel
Peace Prize in 1965.  In September 1990, it hosted a World Summit
for Children to address problems and opportunities for children
and to rally the political will and resources to meet their
needs.  President Bush headed the US delegation.

UN Development Program (UNDP).  Headquartered in New York City,
UNDP has a US administrator and is the largest multilateral
source of grant technical assistance in the world. Voluntarily
funded, it provides expert advice, training, and limited
equipment to developing countries, with increasing emphasis on
assistance to the poorest countries.

UN Environmental Program (UNEP).  Headquartered in Nairobi,
Kenya, UNEP leads and coordinates UN environmental activities,
calling attention to global and regional environmental problems
and stimulating programs to address the problems.  UNEP assists
developing countries in implementing environmentally sound
development policies and has produced a worldwide environmental
monitoring system to standardize international data.  UNEP also
has developed guidelines and treaties on issues such as the
international transport of potentially harmful chemicals,
trans-boundary air pollution, and contamination of international
waterways.

UNEP is implementing two important new agreements aimed at
protecting the earth's ozone layer.  The United States helped
establish, through UNEP and the World Meteorological
Organization, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
(IPCC), which provides a forum to analyze the climate changes in
the atmosphere resulting from natural and  man-made chemicals
(the so-called greenhouse effect).

World Food Program (WFP). Headquartered in Rome, Italy, the WFP
distributes food commodities to support development projects, for
protracted refugee and displaced persons projects, and as
emergency food assistance in situations of natural and manmade
disasters.  Development projects, traditionally about two-thirds
of WFP programs, now constitute about 55%, as emergency and
protracted refugee situations worldwide result in increasing
demands for WFP programs and resources.  WFP operates exclusively
from voluntary contributions of both commodities and cash donated
by governments.

World Health Organization (WHO).  Headquartered in Geneva,
Switzerland, WHO acts as a coordinating authority on
international public health.  After years of fighting smallpox,
WHO declared in 1979 that the disease had been eradicated.  It is
nearing success in developing vaccines against malaria and
schistosomiasis and aims to eradicate polio by the year 2000.
WHO also is coordinating global research into the causes, cures,
and potential vaccines against acquired immune deficiency
syndrome (AIDS).  Overall, the agency is working toward the goal
of "health for all by the year 2000" by seeking a level of health
for all the world's people that will enable them to lead
productive lives.

FINANCING
The UN system is financed in two ways:  assessed and voluntary
contributions from member states.

The regular 2-year budgets of the United Nations and its
specialized agencies are funded by assessments.  In the case of
the UN, the General Assembly approves the regular budget and
determines the assessment for each member.  This is broadly based
on the relative capacity of each country to pay, as measured by
national income statistics, although there are some variations.

The Assembly has established the principle that no member should
pay more than 25% of the regular budget, which for the 1992-93
period is over $2 billion.  The United States is the only nation
affected by this limitation.  If the standard criterion of
"capacity to pay" were applied in the same manner to the United
States as to other major industrial powers, the United States
would be assessed at about 28%.

Under the scale of assessments adopted for period 1992-93, other
major contributors to the regular UN budget are Japan (12%),
Russia (9%), Germany (9%), France (6%), and the UK (5%).  For
1992-93, assessment against members is $1.2 billion per year; the
net US share, after adjustments, is $298.6 million.

The 41st UN General Assembly agreed in 1986 on the need to
institute far-reaching reform measures designed to restore and
strengthen the capability of the United Nations to serve the
interests of its member states.  An acceptable
program-budget-approval mechanism was found that contains the
following essential elements:

--  A consensus decision-making process;

--  A budget ceiling;

 --  An indication of program priorities; and

-- A contingency fund that protects the integrity of the budget
from constant add-ons.

As a result of what was achieved, member states, through
good-faith negotiation, now act by consensus on important
program-budget issues that previously proved so divisive.  This
is essential to the long-term operational viability of the UN and
helped restore a sense of negotiation and cooperation in UN
deliberations beyond budgetary issues.

UN peace-keeping operations have been financed by a combination
of assessments, voluntary contributions, and the sale of UN
bonds.  The UN Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) has been financed solely
by voluntary contributions.  Some member nations, in addition to
providing monetary support, have supplied troops, equipment, or
services without subsequent reimbursement.  The United States has
airlifted personnel from nations contributing troops to a number
of peace-keeping operations.

Special UN programs not included in the regular budget--such as
UNICEF and UNDP--are financed by voluntary contributions from
member governments.  Some private-sector funds also are provided.
Some nations use the UN system extensively to contribute to
developmental assistance programs in other nations.

The United States contributes varying percentages of the costs of
the different agencies and programs in the UN system.  In FY
1990, its combined assessed and voluntary contributions amounted
to about $1.3 billion.

MAINTAINING THE PEACE
The UN Charter gives the Security Council the power to:

--  Investigate any situation threatening international peace;

--  Recommend procedures for peaceful resolution of a dispute;

--  Call upon other member nations to completely or partially
interrupt economic relations as well as sea, air, postal, and
radio communications, or to sever diplomatic relations; and

--  Enforce its decisions militarily, if necessary.


Since the United Nations was created, there have been many
outbreaks of international violence in which the United Nations
has helped to reduce the danger of wider conflict.  It has opened
the way to negotiated settlements through its service as a center
of debate and negotiation, as well as through fact-finding
missions, mediators, and truce observers.  The  United States and
other like-minded nations seek to enhance the effectiveness   of
the Security Council in dealing with international conflicts.
Comprised  of troops and equipment supplied by a broad range of
nations, UN peace-keeping forces sometimes have been able to
limit or prevent conflict.  With experience in the operation of
such forces over many years, this UN activity has become
increasingly prominent as cooperation has increased in recent
years among permanent members of the Security Council.  The UN
cannot impose peace, however.   Some conflicts never have been
discussed by the Security Council, and others have proved to be
beyond the capacity of the UN to influence.  Linkage of UN
peace-keeping efforts to a viable political process has been key
to their success.

The most extensive use of UN troops was in Korea, where, in 1950,
the Security Council mobilized forces under US leadership for the
defense of South Korea against an attack from North Korea.  UN
forces there reached a peak strength of 500,000.

In 1960-64,  20,000 peace-keepers helped restore order following
independence in the Congo (now Zaire).

In 1964, a UN Peace-keeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) was created
to prevent fighting between Greek and Turkish Cypriots.  This
mission was given new urgency when Turkish troops landed on
Cyprus in 1974.

In the search for a peaceful solution in the Middle East, the
United Nations has been involved in various ways over the past 43
years.  Its efforts have ranged from UN-sponsored negotiations to
the actual deployment of UN troops.  For example, the fighting
that broke out when the State of Israel was established in 1948
was halted by a UN cease-fire.  UN mediators helped bring about
armistice agreements between Israel and Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan,
and Syria.  Those agreements provided for implementation by mixed
armistice commissions and the UN Truce Supervision Organization
(UNTSO).  The UN Relief and Works Agency (UNWRA) was established
to assist Arab refugees from the conflict.

In 1956, the Suez Canal crisis was resolved by the withdrawal of
British, French, and Israeli forces from Egyptian territory in
compliance with a UN resolution and by the establishment of the
UN Emergency Force (UNEF I) to preserve the peace.  The UN was
active again in achieving a cease-fire and installing UN
observers after the June 1967 war between Israel and its
neighbors.  Following the outbreak of hostilities in October
1973, a new UN Emergency Force  (UNEF II) was created to
interpose itself between the forces of Israel and Egypt.  It
fulfilled its mandate and was dissolved in 1979 with the
conclusion of the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty.  After Israel
and Syria reached agreement on disengaging their forces on the
Golan Heights in 1974, the Security Council established a UN
Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF).  The mandate of UNDOF has
been extended periodically by the Council.

The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) was created in early
1978, following an Israeli reprisal attack on Palestine
Liberation Organization (PLO) bases in southern Lebanon.  It
permitted an Israeli withdrawal and restored order under the
control of Lebanese authorities.  After Israel's invasion of June
1982 drastically transformed conditions in southern Lebanon,
UNIFIL played  a significant role in efforts to bring stability
to southern Lebanon.  Its mandate has been extended periodically
by the Security Council, with humanitarian and other temporary
tasks added to its functions.

Efforts by the United States and other countries over the years
to enhance the effectiveness of the Security Council in dealing
with international conflicts led to an effective worldwide
coalition in 1990.  For only the second time in UN history, and
for the first time with the USSR's support, the UN formally
authorized the use of force against an aggressor country.  Twelve
UN Security Council resolutions demanded that Iraq withdraw from
Kuwait.  When Iraq did not do so by the January 15, 1991,
deadline, the US-led forces expelled Iraq from Kuwait.

Seven new peace-keeping activities in the Mideast (UNIKOM),
Africa (UNAVEM II and MINURSO),  Central America (ONUCA),
Cambodia (UNAMIC and UNTAC), and the former Yugoslavia (UNPROFOR)
were established in the year following the conclusion of the Gulf
war.  The proliferation of these operations reflected a new
climate of international cooperation and growing consensus that,
in the post-Cold War era, the UN had a central role to play in
helping defuse regional conflicts.  These new UN under-takings
represented also an emerging synthesis of peace-keeping and
peace-making, adding to the traditional peace-keeping  mandates
such responsibilities as  supervising elections, monitoring
human rights, and overseeing civil administration.

With its new, higher profile, however, the UN has had to make
difficult choices.  Limited funds and the UN's own limited
capacity to plan and implement peace-keeping operations required
that priorities be established.  At the recent UN Security
Council summit, 12 other heads of government joined President
Bush in reiterating their support for collective security.  They
encouraged the Secretary General to increase his efforts not only
to resolve conflicts but to head them off.  It was recognized,
however, that fundamental to the success of any UN peace-keeping
operation is the full cooperation  of the parties.  It was
further acknowledged that  regional organizations could play a
constructive peace-keeping role and might be better situated, on
a case-by-case basis, to intercede and mediate the peaceful
resolution of conflicts.

ARMS CONTROL AND DISARMAMENT
The UN Charter, adopted in 1945, gave no immediate priority to
disarmament, but envisaged a system of regulation that would
ensure "the least diversion for armaments of the world's human
and economic resources."  The advent of nuclear weapons came only
weeks after the signing of the Charter and provided immediate
impetus to concepts of arms limitation and disarmament.  In fact,
the first resolution of the first meeting of the General Assembly
(January 24, 1946) was entitled "The Establishment of a
Commission to Deal with the Problems Raised by the Discovery of
Atomic Energy" and called upon the commission to make specific
proposals for "the elimination from national armaments of atomic
weapons and of all other major weapons adaptable to mass
destruction."

The UN has established a few forums to address multilateral
disarmament issues.  The principal ones are the First Committee
of the UN General Assembly, the UN Disarmament Commission, and
the Geneva-based Conference on Disarmament.  Items on the agenda
include consideration of the possible merits of a nuclear test
ban, outer-space arms control, efforts to ban chemical weapons,
nuclear and conventional disarmament, nuclear-weapon-free zones,
reduction of military budgets, and measures to strengthen
international security.

The Conference on Disarmament is the sole forum established by
the international community for the negotiation of multilateral
arms control and disarmament agreements.  Evolving from earlier
multilateral forums dating back to 1959, it has 40 members
representing all areas of the world, including the five major
nuclear-weapon states (China, France, Russia, UK, and US).  The
conference is an autonomous body and is not formally a UN
organization.  It is linked, however, to the UN system through a
personal representative of the Secretary General who serves as
the secretary general of the conference.  Resolutions adopted by
the General Assembly often request the conference to consider
specific disarmament matters.  In turn, the conference reports on
its activities to the General Assembly annually.

HUMAN RIGHTS
The pursuit of human rights was one of the central reasons for
creation of the United Nations.  World War II atrocities,
including the execution of millions of Jews, led to a ready
consensus that the new organization must work to prevent any
similar tragedies in the future.

An early objective was the creation of a framework of legal
obligations as the basis for consideration of and action on
complaints about human rights violations.  The UN Charter obliges
all member nations to promote "universal respect for, and
observance of, human rights" and to take "joint and separate
action" to that end.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, though not legally
binding, was adopted by the General Assembly in 1948.  Treaties
and conventions followed, many of them drawing upon the Universal
Declaration. These included the:


-- International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;

-- International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural
Rights;

-- International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Racial Discrimination;

-- Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
Against Women; and

-- American Convention on Human Rights.


Although each of these treaties has been signed by the United
States, consent to their ratification has not been given by the
Senate.  The Senate has granted its advice and consent to the
Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of
Genocide.  Congress has passed the necessary implementing
legislation, and the convention has been formally ratified by the
United States.

In addition to the preparation of legal documents, various organs
of the UN system undertake consideration of human rights issues.
The General Assembly regularly takes up human rights questions
originating in the Assembly or referred to it by subordinate
bodies.

The UN Human Rights Commission (UNHRC), under ECOSOC, is charged
specifically with promoting human rights. To carry out this
mandate, the UNHRC drafts international instruments, conducts
expert studies, and investigates situations in countries where
human rights violations are believed to occur.  Investigations
can be proposed by any member government and are decided upon by
vote of the entire commission. The 43 UNHRC members (including
the United States) are elected by ECOSOC on the basis of
equitable geographic distribution.  The number of members of the
Commission grew to 53 beginning with the 1992 session, the
additional 10 seats being divided among the Latin American,
African, and Asian groups.

The UNHRC Subcommission on Prevention of Discrimination and
Protection of Minorities is composed of experts serving as
individuals rather than as government representatives.  Among its
various activities, the subcommission may, under procedures set
up by ECOSOC, make a confidential review of private
communications sent to the UN containing allegations of human
rights abuses.  Situations that appear to reveal a consistent
pattern of gross human rights violations may be referred to the
commission in closed session. That body may then make a thorough
study of the situation or may undertake an investigation with the
consent of the accused government.

Other UN agencies also act on human rights concerns.  The ILO was
one of the first agencies to set high standards and reporting
requirements on human rights situations in the labor field.  A
special committee of UNESCO, of which the United States is not a
member, examines human rights complaints from individuals,
groups, and non-governmental organizations within the fields of
education, science, culture, and communication.

The Organization of American States (OAS) has written an American
Convention on Human Rights that gives jurisdiction to an
Inter-American Human Rights Commission and creates a new court on
human rights. The convention entered into force in July 1978. The
United States has signed but not ratified the convention.

The United Nations is expanding its work on behalf of women, not
only to ensure their rights as individuals but also to stress the
need for them to use their talents and abilities for progress on
social issues.  These efforts are reflected in the agendas of the
Commission on the Status of Women, ECOSOC, the General Assembly,
the UNHRC, and the UNDP Governing Council and in discussions of
the rights and problems of elderly women at the World Assembly on
Aging.  UN efforts led to the celebration of International
Women's Year in 1975 and to the declaration of a UN Decade for
Women, 1976-85.

Although the UN system has created a legal framework for action
on human rights, efforts to implement the established standards
have been uneven.  Some observers have suggested that UN forums
have been characterized by "selective morality" as criticism has
been focused primarily on the state of human rights in Chile, El
Salvador, Guatemala, South Africa, and the Israeli-occupied
territories simply because such criticism was acceptable to a
majority of UN members, while criticism of other nations' abuses
was not.

The 1982 and 1983 sessions of the UNHRC marked a departure in
this regard, by taking public action on an East European country,
Poland, for the first time in the commission's history.  At its
1988 session, the commission took a major step toward
investigating the human rights situation in Cuba, primarily as a
result of efforts on the part of the United States.  At that
session, the United States proposed a resolution which would
inscribe Cuba on the commission's 1989 agenda.  This US
initiative prompted negotiations that resulted in an agreement to
send an investigatory team to Cuba under UNHRC auspices and
according to UN rules and regulations regarding special
rapporteurs.  As a result of that investigation, conducted in
Cuba in September 1988, the 1989 session of the UNHRC was
presented with a 400-page report on the human rights situation in
Cuba.  At the 1992 session, the commission, noting no improvement
in the human rights situation there, decided to appoint an
individual as special rapporteur to keep Cuban human rights under
scrutiny.

BENEFITS OF THE UN SYSTEM
One of the benefits of the UN system is the opportunity it
provides for government officials to meet, share ideas, and
consult on international problems.  This helps them to understand
the views of other governments while avoiding confrontations that
might otherwise result from misunderstandings of national
intentions and interests.

Each year in September, the General Assembly's annual regular
session brings together not only the official representatives of
all member countries but also, in many cases, the foreign
ministers and chiefs of state.  The US Secretary of State
traditionally spends 2-3 weeks at the General Assembly each year
consulting with other governments on both bilateral questions and
on issues coming before the United Nations.  President Bush, a
former UN ambassador, follows the tradition set by many US
presidents of addressing the General Assembly annually.

The United Nations and its affiliated international organizations
are especially important to member nations of the Third World who
conduct much of their foreign policy there and rely heavily on
these forums to advance their national interests and interact
with other nations, including the United States.  Thus, the
United States cannot afford to rely solely on its bilateral
relations with Third World countries for advancing US foreign
policy objectives but must take advantage of its participation in
the UN system to influence the opinions and policies of Third
World governments and their peoples.

General Benefits.  Participation in the United Nations and its
affiliated programs and agencies helps the United States in many
ways:  It provides important mechanisms for the advancement of US
foreign policy objectives; it can serve as a powerful platform
for the advancement of Western values and ideals; it facilitates
large-scale humanitarian operations and multilateral efforts to
deal with global problems, such as famine and pestilence; and it
can serve the cause of peace.

In foreign policy, the United Nations clearly accomplishes tasks
that neither the United States nor any nation could accomplish
alone.  These tasks include coordinated efforts to reduce
regional and global environmental problems; to control human and
animal diseases that threaten to reach epidemic proportions; to
monitor, report, and predict global weather patterns; and, most
important, to establish conditions conducive to the peaceful
resolution of disputes between nations.  In particular, UN
peace-keeping forces often have provided a "buffer" (helpful to
the maintenance of cease-fires in the Middle East and Cyprus)  by
establishing an atmosphere in which conflicts can be contained
and peace negotiations can take place.  The United States hopes
that involving the UN will reduce the likelihood  of open
conflict and promote a more stable international order.   History
warns that disputes  can get out of control, drawing large
nations and small into a vortex from which they cannot escape.
The UN can provide an internationally acceptable setting in which
nations can move away from rigid negotiating positions and begin
to seek solutions to their problems.

Achievement of US international goals in human rights depends on
its ability to mobilize world opinion on behalf of human rights
issues.  If only one nation urges an end to genocide, torture,
terrorism, illegal detention, or political persecutions, the
offending nation can procrastinate without penalty.  If, however,
the UN takes a strong stand on behalf of human rights, pressures
for reform are more effective and the likelihood of corrective
action correspondingly greater.

UN programs also can serve US objectives for the developing world
by promoting economic development.  Concerned about global
poverty, the United States attempts through various means to help
developing nations meet basic human needs--clean water, food,
shelter, and health care--and other development goals.  This
objective is pursued on a bilateral basis, through regional
approaches, and by actively employing the UN system to persuade
other countries to share the burden of global development.

The United States and other major Western donors encourage the UN
system to promote private-sector approaches to development in the
Third World and to loosen the bonds of government-controlled
markets and commodity-pricing arrangements.  Today, UN technical
assistance and financing systems are supplying  needed
experience, skills, equipment, resources, and support programs
that encourage self-reliance in developing-country societies,
that encourage change in government policies that are not
conducive to development, and that allow Third World populations
to better cope with difficult circumstances.

UN programs also try to meet humanitarian needs for those
disadvantaged by circumstances beyond their control.  Even
private charitable agencies must rely on the multiple capacities
of the United Nations and its family of international
organizations to develop the infra-structure and political
climate without which those in need would be outside the reach of
our compassion.

Providing opportunities for dialogue between the industrialized
countries and the developing nations is another important role
played by the United Nations, which is particularly important to
the United States because many developing nations regard the UN
system as the most important arena for their foreign relations.
Moreover, these nations constitute more than two-thirds of the
UN's membership and purchase more than one-third of US exports.

In the specialized UN agencies dealing with trade, commodities,
and investment, the United States seeks to expand the world
economy in a way compatible with its own free economic system and
values.  In the Economic and Social Council, the regional
commissions, and the UN Conference on Trade and Development, the
United States has promoted an open international
trading-and-investment system and has insisted on maintaining a
strong role for the private sector in meeting the development
needs of all countries.

The UN and its family of international organizations is a success
story for the West.  It embodies in its charter the same liberal
democratic values and principles that are found in the US
Constitution and makes them applicable to every UN member.  The
UN system can be viewed as a vehicle for putting those values and
principles into practice on a global scale.  As President Bush
said in his State of the Union address on January 29, 1991, "The
leadership of the United Nations, once only a hoped-for ideal, is
now confirming its founders' vision."

Direct Benefits.  Beyond benefits gained for US foreign policy
interests, the United States also gains direct economic, social,
and humanitarian benefits.  Large parts of US financial
assistance to the UN and its related agencies are returned to US
companies through equipment and supply sales and consulting
services.  US support of the UN Development Program encourages
the growth of self-reliance and helps to expand the markets for
US goods and services.

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) efforts to eliminate the
Mediterranean fruit fly from the Caribbean and Central America
directly benefit the US citrus industry.  Likewise, US cattle
raisers have a direct stake in FAO efforts to eliminate the bont
tick, the carrier of a threatening cattle disease, from the
Caribbean.  FAO's voluntary, non-binding Code of Conduct on the
Distribution and Use of Pesticides benefits the US pesticide
industry by encouraging other countries to adopt pesticide-safety
standards comparable to those in force in the United States and
thereby limit competitive advantages otherwise gained by
producers who reduce their costs by failing to observe adequate
labeling and safety standards.

In 1985, UNICEF spent a total of $107 million on goods and
services in the United States.  UNICEF also furthers US
humanitarian interests in the developing world by mobilizing
assistance from public and private sources throughout the world
for programs benefiting children and mothers.

As the world's most advanced nation, the United States has
extensive needs for immediate and reliable worldwide
communication and, therefore, relies on the International
Telecommunication Union (ITU).  It facilitates international
cooperation between member states and promotes the development of
efficient technical facilities in order to improve international
telecommunication services.  As the largest producer and supplier
of telecommunications equipment, the United States benefits from
the technical assistance extended to developing countries from
agencies such as the ITU.

US maritime interests benefit directly from the International
Maritime Organization's work on standardization,
safety-of-life-at-sea measures, and ocean-anti-pollution
programs.  Other US environmental interests are supported by the
UN Environmental Program, which serves as a catalyst in bringing
international attention to global and regional environmental
problems and helping countries develop their economies in
environmentally responsible ways.

The World Meteorological Organization provides weather
information to persons from all spheres of US life--farmers,
mariners, aviators, and travelers.  Its work has significant
economic and social impact on the United States.

Standards and recommended practices developed by the
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) directly affect
US commercial air travel and favorably influence the US economic
community, which supplies the greatest share of aircraft and
equipment world wide.  ICAO develops the principles and
techniques of international air navigation and fosters the
planning and development of international air transport to ensure
the safe and orderly growth of civil aviation.  It also promotes
standards for the control of noise and pollution from aircraft.
US travelers by air and sea benefit from improved safety and
security standards developed by ICAO and the International
Maritime Organization.

The United States also benefits significantly from the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which serves  major US
national security and non-proliferation interests.  IAEA is
charged under its statute with two primary objectives:  through
its program of technical cooperation, it encourages the peaceful
uses of nuclear energy, especially in the fields of medicine,
agriculture, and basic industry, and its program of international
safeguards inhibits the use of nuclear material for non-peaceful
purposes, thus helping to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons.
IAEA also plays an active role in promoting international
cooperation in nuclear safety; it expanded its work in this area
in response to the nuclear disaster in Chernobyl in April 1986.

The UN also serves important US interests through the development
and enforcement of international treaties and conventions, such
as those designed to control drug abuse.  Given the high
importance placed by the United States on control of drug abuse
and drug trafficking, the United Nations provides a valuable
forum to discuss and coordinate relevant international actions.

US POLICY TOWARD THE UNITED NATIONS
The US Government recognizes the value of the United Nations for
the conduct of US foreign relations and for the direct benefits
it provides the United States and its people.

The United States was a major force in the creation of the United
Nations in 1945.  The Senate, by a vote of 89 to 2, gave its
consent to the ratification of the UN Charter on July 28, 1945.
In December 1945, the Senate and the House of Representatives, by
unanimous votes, requested that the United Nations make its
headquarters in the United States.  Since then, the United States
has been a major participant; however, the changing political
makeup of the world following World War II, particularly with the
dismantling of the major European empires, produced changes in
the United Nations and in US approaches to UN issues.

As the United States has reasserted its leadership in
multilateral affairs and strengthened its influence in the United
Nations and its related agencies, it has promoted fiscal
responsibility in the budgetary process, increased the number of
US nationals on staffs of international organizations, and
augmented private-sector involvement in UN programs and
activities.

This initiative culminated in the UN approval of a package of
sweeping reforms in administrative and financial procedures in
December 1986.  Those reforms enable the United Nations to
perform its functions more effectively and efficiently and give
the major donors, including the United States, a greater voice in
determining how money is spent.  The United States, through these
structural reforms, has been able to strengthen its influence
within the UN system.

The United States, in order to achieve its objectives at the
United Nations, has developed a number of closely related
strategies.  The first strategy recognizes that the UN system
offers an excellent opportunity to explain US views on important
issues while spotlighting unacceptable behavior by other
countries.  Through speeches, frequent rights of reply, and
resolutions, the United States has gained increased understanding
for its policies on such issues as the role of the entrepreneur,
the right to private property, and human rights.

The United States has partially succeeded in reducing bloc voting
in the United Nations and moderating the rhetoric and
unreasonable demands of bloc members.  If left unchecked, bloc
voting tends to place policy decisions in the hands of the most
radical members of the bloc and intensifies the immoderation of
UN debates.  The US aims to appeal to the individual interests of
each bloc member as opposed to the often imaginary benefits of
bloc solidarity in support of radical and impracticable demands.
In addition, this strategy attempts to link US interests with
those of other countries, thereby increasing the US leverage.

The United States also has pursued the universality principle
with respect to UN membership, stating that the United States
would cease participation in, and support for, any UN body that
excluded Israel or denied Israel the full privileges of
membership.  This affirmation is supported by congressional
legislation that outlines the same principle and calls for the
same action by the United States if Israel is denied full
membership privileges in any of the UN bodies, agencies, or their
subsidiary components.

In 1991, the UN took a decisive step long sought by the United
States when it repealed the determination appearing in UN
resolution 3379 of 1975 that Zionism is a form of racism.  The
assertion equating Zionism with racism challenged the right of
the State of Israel to exist and undermined the integrity and
even-handedness of the UN as an international organization.  On
December 12, 1991, the United States and 85 co-sponsors tabled a
draft resolution which sought to revoke the determination.  On
December 16, 1991, this resolution was adopted by a vote of 111
(US)-25-13 (with 15 absences).  This action by the General
Assembly was an extremely important step in restoring credibility
to the UN.

Apart from approval of budgetary matters, General Assembly
resolutions are recommendatory and not binding on the members.
Binding decisions concerning action with respect to threats to
the peace and acts of aggression can only be made by the Security
Council, as in the case of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.  In that
case, the UN Charter gives the United States and the four other
permanent members the right of veto.  The United States is thus
the beneficiary of an important voting privilege.

US proposals for enhancing UN effectiveness include:

--  Strengthening the role of the Security Council in the
settlement of disputes, particularly through more automatic
referral to the Council in situations of international tension;

--  Strengthening the UN's peace-keeping capability, including
the development by member nations of trained national troop
contingents for quick deployment;

--  Addressing disarmament and arms-control questions more
effectively;

--  Addressing human rights issues more effectively and
equitably;

--  Exploring ways to supplement the financing of international
programs with funds from international commerce, services, or
resources;

--  Improving the effectiveness of the United Nations through the
unitary UN concept which would eliminate overlap and duplication;

--  Coordinating the technical assistance programs in various UN
agencies more effectively, including better delivery of
humanitarian aid and expanded efforts for evaluation, monitoring,
and quality control;

--  Improving the UN Secretariat, both in operations and quality
of personnel; and,

--  Coordinating the participation in the UN system of various
branches of the US Government more effectively.

US Representation
The US Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York is
headed by the US Representative to the United Nations, with the
rank of ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary.  The
mission serves as the channel of communication for the US
Government with the UN organs, agencies, and commissions at the
UN headquarters and with the other permanent missions accredited
to the UN and the non-member observer missions.  The US mission
has a professional staff made up largely of career Foreign
Service officers, including specialists in public affairs and in
political, economic, social, financial, legal, and military
issues.

The United States also maintains missions in Geneva, Montreal,
Nairobi, Rome, and Vienna as well as offices in other cities
where various UN agencies are based.  All of these missions
report to the Department of State and receive guidance on all
questions of policy from the President through the Secretary of
State.  Relations with the UN and its family of agencies are
coordinated by the Assistant Secretary of State for International
Organization Affairs.

US delegations to the annual regular sessions of the General
Assembly include two members of the US Congress--one Democrat and
one Republican, selected in alternate years from the Senate and
the House of Representatives.  Delegations also include prominent
US citizens from fields outside the government.

 The US Mission to the United  Nations is located at 799 United
Nations Plaza, New York, NY  10017  (tel. [phone]).


Preamble to Charter of the United Nations:

We the Peoples of the United Nations Determined

 To Save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which
twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and

 To Reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity
and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and
women of nations large and small, and

 To establish conditions under which justice and respect for the
obligations arising from treaties and other sources of
international law can be maintained, and

 To promote social progress and better standards of life in
larger freedom,

And for these ends

 To practice tolerance and live together in peace with one
another as good neighbors, and

 To Unite our strength to maintain international peace and
security, and

 To Ensure, by the acceptance of principles and the institution
of methods, that armed force shall not be used, save in the
common interest, and

 To employ international machinery for the promotion of the
economic and social advancement of all peoples,

Have resolved to combine our efforts to accomplish these aims.

 Accordingly, our respective Governments, through representatives
assembled in the city of San Francisco, who have exhibited their
full powers found to be in good and due form, have agreed to the
present Charter of the United Nations and do hereby establish an
international organization to be known as the United Nations.

178 Members of the United Nations1

Afghanistan (1946)
Albania (1955)
Algeria (1962)
Angola (1976)
Antigua and Barbuda (1981)
Argentina
Armenia (1992)
Australia
Austria (1955)
Azerbaijan (1992)
The Bahamas (1973)
Bahrain (1971)
Bangladesh (1974)
Barbados (1966)
Belarus (formerly
    Byelorussian SSR)
Belgium
Belize (1981)
Benin (1960)
Bhutan (1971)
Bolivia
Bosnia-Hercegovina (1992)
Botswana (1966)
Brazil
Brunei Darussalam (1984)
Bulgaria (1955)
Burkina Faso (1960)
Burma (1948)
Burundi (1962)
Cambodia (1955)
Cameroon (1960)
Canada
Cape Verde (1975)
Central African Republic (1960)
Chad (1960)
Chile
China2
Colombia
Comoros (1975)
Congo (1960)
Costa Rica
Cote d'Ivoire (1960)
Croatia (1992)
Cuba
Cyprus (1960)
Czechoslovakia
Denmark
Djibouti (1977)
Dominica (1978)
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
Equatorial Guinea (1968)
Estonia (1991)
Ethiopia
Fiji (1970)
Finland (1955)
France
Gabon (1960)
The Gambia (1965)
Georgia (1992)
Germany (1973)
Ghana (1957)
Greece
Grenada (1974)
Guatemala
Guinea (1958)
Guinea-Bissau (1974)
Guyana (1966)
Haiti
Honduras
Hungary (1955)
Iceland (1946)
India
Indonesia (1950)
Iran
Iraq
Ireland (1955)
Israel (1949)
Italy (1955)
Jamaica (1962)
Japan (1956)
Jordan (1955)
Kazakhstan (1992)
Kenya (1963)
Korea, North (1991)
Korea, South (1991)
Kuwait (1963)
Kyrgystan (1992)
Laos (1955)
Latvia (1991)
Lebanon
Lesotho (1966)
Liberia
Libya (1955)
Liechtenstein (1990)
Lithuania (1991)
Luxembourg
Madagascar (1960)
Malawi (1964)
Malaysia (1957)
Maldives (1965)
Mali (1960)
Malta (1964)
Marshall Islands (1991)
Mauritania (1961)
Mauritius (1968)
Mexico
Micronesia (1991)
Moldova (1992)
Mongolia (1961)
Morocco (1956)
Mozambique (1975)
Namibia (1990)
Nepal (1955)
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Niger (1960)
Nigeria (1960)
Norway
Oman (1971)
Pakistan (1947)
Panama
Papua New Guinea (1975)
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Poland
Portugal (1955)
Qatar (1971)
Romania (1955)
Russia3
Rwanda (1962)
St. Kitts and Nevis (1983)
St. Lucia (1979
St. Vincent and the Grenadines (1980)
Samoa (1976)
San Marino (1992)
Sao Tome and Principe (1975)
Saudi Arabia
Senegal (1960)
Seychelles (1976)
Sierra Leone (1961)
Singapore (1965)
Slovenia (1992)
Solomon Islands (1978)
Somalia (1960)
South Africa
Spain (1955)
Sri Lanka (1955)
Sudan (1956)
Suriname (1975)
Swaziland (1968)
Sweden (1946)
Syria
Tanzania (1961)
Tajikistan (1992)
Thailand (1946)
Togo (1960)
Trinidad and Tobago (1962)
Tunisia (1956)
Turkey
Turkmenistan (1992)
Uganda (1962)
Ukraine  (formerly Ukrainian SSR)
United Arab Emirates (1971)
United Kingdom
United States of America
Uruguay
Uzbekistan (1992)
Vanuatu (1981)
Venezuela
Vietnam (1977)
Yemen (1947)
Zaire (1960)
Zambia (1964)
Zimbabwe (1980)

  1Year in parentheses indicates date of admission; countries
with no date were original members in 1945.

  2By Resolution 2758 (XXVI) of Oct. 25, 1971, the General
Assembly decided "to restore all its rights to the People's
Republic of China and to recognize the representative of its
Government as the only legitimate representative of China to the
United Nations."

  3In December 1991, Russia assumed the permanent Security
Council seat previously held by the USSR.

UN Secretaries General

Trygve Lie (Norway) Feb.  1, 1946-April 10, 1953

Dag Hammarskjold(Sweden) April 10, 1953-Sept. 18, 1961

U Thant (Burma) Nov. 3, 1961-Dec. 31, 1971
(Initially appointed acting Secretary General; formally appointed
Secretary General Nov. 30, 1962.)

Kurt Waldheim (Austria) Jan. 1, 1972-Dec. 31, 1981

Javier Perez de Cuellar (Peru) Jan. 1, 1982-Dec. 31, 1991

Boutros Boutros-Ghali (Egypt) Jan. 1, 1992-present

US Representatives to the United Nations:

Edward R. Stettinius, Jr.- March 1946-June 1946

Hershel V. Johnson (acting) - June 1946-Jan. 1947

Warren R. Austin - Jan. 1947-Jan. 1953

Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. - Jan. 1953-Sept. 1960

James J. Wadsworth - Sept. 1960-Jan. 1961

Adlai E. Stevenson-Jan. 1961-July 1965

Arthur J. Goldberg-July 1965-June 1968

George W. Ball-June 1968-Sept. 1968

James Russell Wiggins-Oct. 1968-Jan. 1969

Charles W. Yost- Jan. 1969-Feb. 1971

George Bush - Feb. 1971-Jan. 1973

John A. Scali - Feb. 1973-June 1975

Daniel P. Moynihan- June 1975-Feb. 1976

William W. Scranton - March 1976-Jan. 1977

Andrew Young  - Jan. 1977-April 1979

Donald McHenry  - April 1979-Jan. 1981

Jeane J. Kirkpatrick -Feb. 1981-April 1985

Vernon Walters -May 1985-Jan. 1989

Thomas R. Pickering -March 1989-May 1992

Edward J. Perkins-May 1992-present

-   In 1992, UN membership increased to 178 with the addition of
13 new countries:

Armenia (March)
Azerbaijan (March)
Bosnia-Hercegovina (May)
Croatia (May)
Georgia (July)
Kazakhstan (March)
Kyrgyzstan (March)
Moldova (March)
San Marino (March)
Slovenia (May)
Tajikistan (March)
Turkmenistan (March)
Uzbekistan (March)

Published by the US Department of State Bureau of Public Affairs
-- Office of Public Communication -- Washington, DC
October  1992 -- Editor:  Joan Bigge --

Department of State Publication 8874 -- Background Notes Series
This material is in the public domain and may  be reprinted
without permission; citation of this source is appreciated.

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, US Government
Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402.