INTRODUCTION

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. A meeting was held at Dumbarton Oaks for the
formation of the United Nations, where the principles of the
organization were laid down. 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.
The United Nations was created with one central mission: the
maintenance of international peace and security. The UN
accomplishes this by working to prevent conflict, helping parties in
conflict make peace, deploying peacekeepers, and creating the
conditions to allow peace to hold and flourish. These activities often
overlap and should reinforce one another, to be effective. The UN
Security Council has the primary responsibility for international peace
and security. The General Assembly and the Secretary-General play
major, important, and complementary roles, along with other UN
offices and bodies.

The United Nations Charter

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 threats
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.
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 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 confer 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.
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.

United Nations General Assembly resolutions (UNGA)

All the members of the United Nations are required to vote on a
resolution relating to issues of poverty, development, peace, and
security, etc in the General Assembly of the United Nations.
Generally, a simple majority vote (50%+1) is required. In case if the
General Assembly is of the view that a certain issue is an important
question (pertaining to matters of international peace and security)
then it requires a 2/3rd majority.:
The UNGA on 14th December 1974 adopted the Resolution 3314
which provided for the definition of aggression. The definition as per
Article 1 states that “ aggression is the use of armed force by a State
against the sovereignty, territorial integrity or political independence
of another State, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Charter
of the United Nations”
General Assembly
Despite the fact that the Assembly has not been empowered to settle
the disputes using any specific means, it holds a wide range of powers
to discuss the same under Article 11 para 2 and may make
recommendations under Article 14 to the parties in dispute which may
help them to arrive at peaceful and friendly conclusions. Thus, in
simpler words, it can be said that the Assembly holds the ‘general’
power for the peaceful settlement of international disputes.

Security Council
The Security Council takes the lead in determining the existence of a
threat to the peace or an act of aggression. The Charter of the United
Nations gives the Security Council primary responsibility for the
maintenance of international peace and security. It calls upon the
parties to a dispute to settle it by peaceful means and recommends
methods of adjustment or terms of settlement. Under Chapter VII of
the UN Charter, the Security Council can take enforcement measures
to maintain or restore international peace and security. Such measures
range from economic sanctions to international military action. The
Council also establishes UN Peacekeeping Operations and Special
Political Missions.
Chapter VI of the Charter provides the various modes by which the
Council settles the disputes peacefully.

In fulfilling this responsibility, the Security Council may adopt a

range of measures, including the establishment of United Nations
peacekeeping operations, sanctions, such as trade embargoes, to
enforce its decisions. The Council expresses its will in resolutions.
International Court of Justice
The international community is a dynamic one. This leads to clashes
between the various members of this community. States disagree on
where their border is, contest islands of maritime borders, violate
treaties and other rules of international law. Resolving matters of
these natures is the job of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The
ICJ is not only needed for resolving international disputes. Even the
UN seeks their help when they need an opinion on a legal question.

The court has existed since 1946. The official languages are English
and French. The United Nations Charter is an integral part of the ICJ.
Thus, all UN member states automatically recognize the authority of
the ICJ and can call for its help in any legal matter. It does not try
individuals and only disputes between states can be submitted to it.
The Outer Space Treaty
It was adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 1962
(XVIII) in 1963 and it entered into force in October 1967.
It was formed for the regulations of the exploration of space. It makes
it mandatory that the usage of the space should be done in a peaceful
manner for peace, security, and development. It was also set up to
govern international co-operation with regards to peaceful usage of
space.
Article 3
All the participant states, carrying out activities on the moon and other
celestial objects with regards to the exploration of space, will do it in
accordance with the international laws and also, in accordance with
the United Nations Charter.This will make sure, such activities
maintain peace and security of all the states and promote international
cooperation and peace among all the participating states.

Article 4
This Article instructs the States to not place any space object in the
orbit of space that carries any nuclear weapon or a weapon that can
lead to mass destruction. It also prohibits the state from installing such
weapons on celestial bodies or station nuclear weapons in space in
any other manner.

It further provides that the Moon and other celestial bodies are
reserved for peaceful exploration, exclusively by all the states. So, the
establishment of any military base and installations and fortifications,
the testing of any kind of weapons and the conduct of military
maneuvers on celestial bodies are forbidden completely.
Countering Terrorism
The UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy (A/RES/60/288) is a
unique global instrument to enhance national, regional and
international efforts to counter terrorism. Through its adoption by
consensus in 2006, all UN Member States agreed the first time to a
common strategic and operational approach to fighting terrorism.
The UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy in the form of a
resolution and an annexed Plan of Action (A/RES/60/288) is
composed of 4 pillars, namely:
Addressing the conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism
Measures to prevent and combat terrorism
Measures to build states’ capacity to prevent and combat terrorism
and to strengthen the role of the United Nations system in that regard

Measures to ensure respect for human rights for all and the rule of law
as the fundamental basis for the fight against terrorism
Peacekeeping
Peacekeeping has proven to be one of the most effective tools
available to the UN to assist countries to navigate the difficult path
from conflict to peace. Today's multidimensional peacekeeping
operations are called upon not only to maintain peace and security,
but also to facilitate political processes, protect civilians, assist in the
disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of former combatants;
support constitutional processes and the organization of elections,
protect and promote human rights and assist in restoring the rule of
law and extending legitimate state authority.
Peacekeeping operations get their mandates from the UN Security
Council; their troops and police are contributed by Members States;
and they are managed by the Department of Peace Operations and
supported by the Department of Operational Support at UN
Headquarters in New York.
There have been a total of 71 peacekeeping operations deployed since
1948.