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DAILY
CLASS NOTES
International Relations

Lecture – 05
United Nations and
its Organisations
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United Nations and its Organisations

South China Sea Dispute:
 It is one of the main arteries of global trade; every year 5 trillion dollars of goods pass through the South
China Sea.
 It is important for India because 50% of India's international trade passes through the South China Sea.
 Countries involved in South China Sea Disputes are
 China
 Vietnam
 Philippines
 Countries of the Malay peninsula
a. Malaysia
b. To some extent Indonesia also
 South China Sea Dispute is for the following region
1. Paracel Island
2. Spratly Island
3. Scarborough Shoal Island
 China calls the South China Sea it's core Chinese national interest.
 Other Chinese core national interests are
1. Tibet
2. Xinjiang
3. Taiwan
 It means China can even use its force to protect its national interests.
China's Peaceful Rise Doctrine:
 According to China, its rise should not be looked at as a threat to peace and stability; for the world as
well as Asia.
 China is eager to grow and develop along with the countries of the world and more particularly with the
countries of Asia.
 China's rise is peaceful and it is of interest to countries of the world and region.
East China Sea Dispute:
 The group of islands in the East China Sea is called Senkaku Island by Japan and Diaoyu Island by
China.
 This island is a dispute between China and Japan.
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League of Nations:
 It came into existence after the first world war in 1919.
 The idea of a League of Nations is given by the USA but the USA itself is not a member of the League of
Nations.
 The responsibility of the League of Nations is to ensure world peace, but it failed which leads to the Second
World War.
United Nations (UN):
 The United Nations is a successor of the League of Nations.
 It came into existence in 1945.
 Its objective is to ensure world peace.
 The United Nations is a collective security organisation that is responsible for ensuring peace at the global
level.
 India is also a member of the United Nations.
 It is headquartered in New York City.
Reports published by United Nations:
1. The State of World Population Report
2. Human Development Report
3. Global Environment Report
4. Global Economic Condition and Possibilities Report
United Nations General Assembly (UNGA):
 It is the main policy-making body of the UN.
 All UN members are its members.
 It discusses important issues of international importance.
United Nations Security Council (UNSC):
 Functions of UNSC:
1. To enforce the role of law in International politics.
2. Induction and expulsion of members from the UN.
3. It plays an important role in the appointment of the Secretary-general.
Composition of UNSC:
 There are two sets of members under the UNSC
1. Permanent members:
 There are five permanent members
 They are Russia, China, USA, France and Britain.
 Only these five permanent members have veto power.
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2. Non-Permanent members:
 There are ten Non-Permanent members.
 Originally there were six Non-Permanent members and the number of Non-Permanent members was
increased to ten in 1965.
 Right now India is a Non-Permanent member of the UN Security Council.
Note:
 Non-Permanent members of the UN Security Council are elected for a period of two years.
 Non-Permanent members can be elected only for two terms after which the member country needs to
vacate its position.
G-4 Grouping:
 It came into existence in 2005.
 This grouping is working actively for UN Security Council reforms.
 The countries of this grouping are:
 India
 Japan
 Germany
 Brazil
Coffee Club Proposal:
 These countries do not want reforms at UNSC.
 They are demanding expansion in the Non-Permanent Members category.
 These countries are the regional rivals of G-4.
 For example:
1. Pakistan against India
2. South Korea and Indonesia against Japan
3. Italy against Germany
4. Argentina and Mexico against Brazil
 According to these countries, increases in the number of permanent membership categories will make
the decision-making process extremely slow.
United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC):
 It has been in the news because of Russia's suspension from the United Nations Human Rights
Commission due to the ongoing war in Ukraine.
 Before Russia it was Libia, which was suspended from the UNHRC in 2011.
 It consists of 47 countries.
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 It is a body that prepares reports with respect to human rights violations in any part of the world.
 It places its report before the General Assembly and its findings are non-binding.
 Its members are elected for a period of three years.
International Labour Organization (ILO):
 It is the oldest organisation of the UN system.
 It came into existence in 1919.
 It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
 Its objective is to promote social justice.
 There are 187 member countries.
 It publishes reports on the working conditions of workers.
 The most important report is the global employment trend report which gives insight into employment
trends across the world.
World Health Organisation (WHO):
 It was established in 1948.
 It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
 Number of member countries is 194.
 It publishes the following report:
 World Health Report
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