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UNITED NATIONS

UN Headquarters

The UN headquarters consist of several buildings along the East river in New York City. The three main buildings are the General Assembly Building, the Secretariat Building and the Conference Building. A smaller building next to the Secretariat  Building houses the library. The flags of all the member nations fly in front of the UN headquarters.

UN Flag

The white UN emblem is superimposed on a light blue background. The emblem consists of the global map, surrounded by two olive branches open at the top.

Official Languages

The official languages of the UN are -- Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish. However, the working languages are English and French only. Delegates of different nations may address the General Assembly in any language if they provide a translation into one of the official languages. Skilled interpreters instantly translate the words into each of the other official languages , the delegates were earphones to listen to the translation they choose.

Membership of the UN

The UN membership is open to all 'peace-loving nations' that are 'able and willing' to carry out the duties required by the Charter. Both the Security Council and the General Assembly must approve applications for membership. A member nation that violates the Charter may be suspended or even expelled from the UN.

The Six Major UN Organs

The Charter sets up the six main organs of the UN and explains the duties, powers and operating methods of each. These organs are:

1. General Assembly

2. Security Council

3. Secretariat

4. Economic and Social Council

5. International Court of Justice

6. Trusteeship Council

Here  are the functions, in brief, of these six major UN organs:

1. The General Assembly is the only major organ of the UN in which all members are represented. It controls much of the UN's work and debates on major issues of international affairs.

2. The Security Council has the major responsibility in the UN to maintain international peace and security. The Charter gives the council special powers to carry out this responsibility.

3. The Secretariat manages the day-to-day business of the United Nations. Its main job is to provide services for all the other UN organs.

4. The Economic and Social Council works to encourage higher standards of living, better health, cultural and educational co-operation among nations and observance of human rights.

5. The International Court of Justice handles international legal disputes. The headquarters of the court are at The Hague, in the Netherlands.

6. The Trusteeship Council was designed to help a number of territories that were not self governing at the time the  UN was founded. The council suspended its operations in 1994, after the last of the territories gained independence but it still exists under the UN Charter.