Lecture-11

International Organizations

What are International Organizations?

An international governmental organization (IGO), also referred to as an intergovernmental

organization, is an organization with a membership of only states. The organization is usually
founded upon a treaty, or a multilateral agreement, and consists of more than two states. Member
states determine the way in which the organization is run, vote within the organisation and provide
its funding. Some international agreements create international organizations, which are
institutions that set rules for nations and provide venues for diplomacy.

International Governmental Organizations

IGOs form when governments make an agreement or band together. Only governments belong to
IGOs, which are sometimes also known by the acronym IO (for international organization). The
United Nations (UN), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the World Trade
Organization (WTO), and the European Union (EU) are all examples of IGOs.

Nongovernmental Organizations

Unlike governmental organizations, NGOs are made up of individuals, not businesses or

governments. NGOs serve a variety of functions and represent numerous interests. Organizations
that are not affiliated with governments but that nevertheless play an important role in international
politics are called nongovernmental actors. Not all NGOs have a positive impact on global
politics. Although Amnesty International has helped defend human rights, for example, the
international terrorist organization al Qaeda has killed civilians in an effort to cripple economies
and topple governments. Since the end of World War II, nongovernmental actors have become
more important in the global arena.

Multinational Corporations

MNCs, or businesses that operate in more than one country, are another type of nongovernmental
actor in the international system. Although MNCs are nongovernmental actors, they are not NGOs:
As businesses, MNCs cannot be considered NGOs. Their primary aim is to make money. In the

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twenty-first century, MNCs dominate the global economy: According to the Coca-Cola
corporation, for example, more than 70 million Coke products are consumed daily in Africa.

United Nations UN

Established in 1945 following the end of the Second World War, the United Nations (UN) is a
prime example of an international governmental organisation with almost universal membership.
Only states can be members of the United Nations and membership is valued because it confers
upon the member state international recognition of its sovereignty. As of 2017 there are 193 UN
member states – but it is important to note that a small number of states are not members. Taiwan,
for example, has repeatedly requested membership but has had its request blocked by China. This
is because China regards Taiwan as a part of its sovereign territory and does not recognize it as an
independent nation. Taiwan, of course, wants United Nations membership because this will mean
that the international community fully accepts its sovereignty. The Taiwan example has gone
unresolved for decades due to the major role that China plays within the United Nations as one of
its most powerful members.

The main bodies of the United Nations are the General Assembly, the Security Council, the
Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice, and the
UN Secretariat. All were established under the UN Charter when the Organization was founded in
1945.

General Assembly

The General Assembly is the main deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the UN.
All 193 Member States of the UN are represented in the General Assembly, making it the only UN
body with universal representation. Each year, in September, the full UN membership meets in
the General Assembly Hall in New York for the annual General Assembly session, and general
debate, which many heads of state attend and address. Decisions on important questions, such as
those on peace and security, admission of new members and budgetary matters, require a two-
thirds majority of the General Assembly. Decisions on other questions are by simple majority. The
General Assembly, each year, elects a GA President to serve a one-year term of office.

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 Security Council

The Security Council has primary responsibility, under the UN Charter, for the maintenance of
international peace and security. It has 15 Members (5 permanent and 10 non-permanent
members). Each Member has one vote. Under the Charter, all Member States are obligated to
comply with Council decisions. The Security Council takes the lead in determining the existence
of a threat to the peace or act of aggression. It calls upon the parties to a dispute to settle it by
peaceful means and recommends methods of adjustment or terms of settlement. In some cases, the
Security Council can resort to imposing sanctions or even authorize the use of force to maintain
or restore international peace and security. The Security Council has a Presidency, which rotates,
and changes, every month.

Economic and Social Council

The Economic and Social Council is the principal body for coordination, policy review, policy
dialogue and recommendations on economic, social and environmental issues, as well as
implementation of internationally agreed development goals. It serves as the central mechanism
for activities of the UN system and its specialized agencies in the economic, social and
environmental fields, supervising subsidiary and expert bodies. It has 54 Members, elected by the
General Assembly for overlapping three-year terms. It is the United Nations’ central platform for
reflection, debate, and innovative thinking on sustainable development.

Trusteeship Council

The Trusteeship Council was established in 1945 by the UN Charter, under Chapter XIII, to
provide international supervision for 11 Trust Territories that had been placed under the
administration of seven Member States, and ensure that adequate steps were taken to prepare the
Territories for self-government and independence. By 1994, all Trust Territories had attained self-
government or independence. The Trusteeship Council suspended operation on 1 November 1994.
By a resolution adopted on 25 May 1994, the Council amended its rules of procedure to drop the
obligation to meet annually and agreed to meet as occasion required -- by its decision or the
decision of its President, or at the request of a majority of its members or the General Assembly
or the Security Council.

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 International Court of Justice

The International Court of Justice is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. Its seat is
at the Peace Palace in the Hague (Netherlands). It is the only one of the six principal organs of the
United Nations not located in New York (United States of America). The Court’s role is to settle,
in accordance with international law, legal disputes submitted to it by States and to give advisory
opinions on legal questions referred to it by authorized United Nations organs and specialized
agencies. The International Court of Justice functions in accordance with its Statute.

Other International/Regional Organizations

Leaving aside bigger organizations like the European Union and the United Nations, international
governmental organizations are typically more specific in nature – often dealing with just one
particular issue or a specific geographical area. The work that they do is often clear from their
names – for example, the International Whaling Commission (IWC) or the International Criminal
Police Organization (INTERPOL). These are issue-based organizations and their members are
worldwide. Then there are organizations of states in specific regions, such as the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the African Union (AU). These often emulate elements of
the European Union, but none (as yet) feature supranational powers. Other organizations are
neither geographically limited nor limited to a single issue. The Commonwealth of Nations, for
example, is an organisation whose membership is restricted to former colonies of the United
Kingdom. Having been around since 1949, the Commonwealth also has its own permanent
secretariat. An international governmental organisation that does not have its own fixed secretariat
is the BRICS – an intergovernmental organisation of only five countries (Brazil, Russia, India,
China and South Africa) focusing on economic and financial issues of interest to its members. The
point to remember is that as long as an organisation is composed exclusively of states, or
governments (including government agencies), it is an international governmental organisation
operating according to international norms.

These international governmental organizations are outside the United Nations but are almost
always tied to the UN in some way or another. For some, these ties are explicitly spelled out in the
document that establishes them. For others, the simple goal of ensuring that their work is relevant
ties them to the United Nations at least tangentially. Take the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA), for example. The founding statute of the Agency dictates that its reports should go to the

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United Nations so that the Security Council may take action against any countries that fail to meet
their obligations. This works out well for the international community – as the International
Atomic Energy Agency monitors the use of nuclear technology while the UN Security Council
enforces measures to ensure state compliance over nuclear safety and security.

Like most other things, international organizations are only as good as the results they yield, but
there is no denying that they play a central role in international affairs. Their growth, particularly
in the twentieth century when the concept of global governance came of age, means that nearly
every aspect of life is regulated in some way at the global level.