About United Nation

The United Nations (UN) is an organization between countries established on 24 October 1945 to promote

international cooperation. It was founded to replace the League of Nations following World War II and to
prevent another conflict. When it was founded, the UN had 51 Member States; there are now 193.
Most nations are members of the UN and send diplomats to the headquarters to hold meetings and make
decisions about global issues.
Principles of UN:
The goals of the United Nations are:

 to keep world peace.
 to help countries get along.
 to improve living conditions for people all over the world.
 and to make the world a better place

Purpose of the United Nations:

The Purpose of the United Nations, according to its Charter, are:
(1) To maintain international peace and security.
(2) To develop friendly relations among nations on the basis of equality and the principle of self-determination.
(3) To foster worldwide cooperation in solving economic, social, cultural and humanitarian problems.
(4) To promote human rights and fundamental freedom for the people of the world.
(5) To serve as a centre where various nations can coordinate their activities towards the attainment of the
objectives of the United Nations.
(6) To save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.

The organs of the United Nations:

The UN has six principal organs to carry out its functions:
1. The General Assembly,
2. The Security Council,
3. The Economic and Social Council,
4. The Trusteeship Council,
5. The International Court of Justice and
6. The Secretariat.
The General Assembly:
The General Assembly is the largest organ of the UN. All members of the UN are members of the General
Assembly. Each state can send up to five representatives but is entitled to one vote in the Assembly. This
ensures that all the member states have equal status.
 The General Assembly meets once a year for three months. But special sessions may be held during times of
crisis. At the beginning of every session, the Assembly elects a new President.
The functions of the General Assembly are as follows:
1. It can discuss any matter affecting international peace and security.
2. It makes recommendations for peaceful settlements of disputes.
3. It passes the budget of the UN.
4. It elects the non-permanent members of the Security Council.
5. It also elects the members of the Economic and Social Council and the Trusteeship Council.
6. It admits new members to the UN on the recommendation of the Security Council.
7. The Security Council and the General Assembly elect the members of the International Court of Justice.
8. In recent years the General Assembly has increased its power through a resolution called Uniting for Peace
Resolution. The General Assembly can make recommendations for “collective measures, including the use of
armed forces”, in case the Security Council is unable to take a decision during a crisis.
Decisions are taken in the General Assembly by a simple majority vote. In some important cases a two-thirds
majority vote is required for taking a decision.

The Security Council:

The Security Council is the most important and effective organ of the UN. It is the executive wing of the UN.
The Security Council consists of 15 members. Five of them are permanent members, namely Britain, China,
France, Russia and the USA. The ten non-permanent members are elected by the General Assembly for a term
of two years.

Each member has one vote. Decisions are taken by a majority vote of at least nine members including the five
permanent members. Each permanent member has the power to reject or veto a decision. This means a negative
vote by any one of the permanent members would lead to a cancellation of the resolution. The Council is
powerless to act if there is such a veto by any permanent member although it may be supported by all other
permanent members.

The Security Council has the basic responsibility of maintaining peace and security in the world. The Security
Council meets once a month but in the event of an emergency, a meeting may be held whenever required.

Functions and Powers

Under the United Nations Charter, the functions and powers of the Security Council are:
 
 to maintain international peace and security in accordance with the principles and purposes of the
United Nations;
 to investigate any dispute or situation which might lead to international friction;
 to recommend methods of adjusting such disputes or the terms of settlement;
 to formulate plans for the establishment of a system to regulate armaments;
 to determine the existence of a threat to the peace or act of aggression and to recommend what action
should be taken;
 to call on Members to apply economic sanctions and other measures not involving the use of force to
prevent or stop aggression;
 to take military action against an aggressor;
 to recommend the admission of new Members;
 to exercise the trusteeship functions of the United Nations in "strategic areas";
 to recommend to the General Assembly the appointment of the Secretary-General and, together with
the Assembly, to elect the Judges of the International Court of Justice.

Voting System
Vote and Majority Required

Article 27 of the UN Charter states that:

1. Each member of the Security Council shall have one vote.
2. Decisions of the Security Council on procedural matters shall be made by an affirmative vote of
nine members.
3. Decisions of the Security Council on all other matters shall be made by an affirmative vote of
nine members including the concurring votes of the permanent members; provided that, in
decisions under Chapter VI, and under paragraph 3 of Article 52, a party to a dispute shall
abstain from voting.
The Right to Veto

The creators of the United Nations Charter conceived that five countries — China, France, the Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics (USSR) [which was succeeded in 1990 by the Russian Federation], the United Kingdom and
the United States —, because of their key roles in the establishment of the United Nations, would continue to
play important roles in the maintenance of international peace and security.
They were granted the special status of Permanent Member States at the Security Council, along with a special
voting power known as the "right to veto". It was agreed by the drafters that if any one of the five permanent
members cast a negative vote in the 15-member Security Council, the resolution or decision would not be
approved.
All five permanent members have exercised the right of veto at one time or another. If a permanent member
does not fully agree with a proposed resolution but does not wish to cast a veto, it may choose to abstain, thus
allowing the resolution to be adopted if it obtains the required number of nine favourable votes.
UN Security Council Voting:

To be approved, a Council resolution must have nine "YES" votes out of 15 and no "NO" votes from any of the
five permanent members.
Each Council member has one vote.
A "NO" vote from one of the five permanent members kills the resolution.
There is no such thing as a "VETO" vote in formal UN rules, though a "NO" vote from a permanent member
has the effect of vetoing a resolution.
If a member "ABSTAINS" from voting, it does not count as either a "YES" or "NO" vote.
Members raise their hands to vote, and sit at a horseshoe-shaped table.
Each of the five Permanent Members has gone to war or invaded a country without Security Council approval.

How does the UN maintain international peace and security?

Maintain International Peace and Security

The United Nations came into being in 1945, following the devastation of the Second World War, with
one central mission: the maintenance of international peace and security. The UN does this by working
to prevent conflict; helping parties in conflict make peace; peacekeeping; 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.

Security Council
The Security Council  takes the lead in determining the existence of a threat to the peace or an 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. Under Chapter VII of the 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.

General Assembly
The General Assembly is the main deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the UN. Through
regular meetings, the General Assembly provides a forum for Member States to express their views to the entire
membership and find consensus on difficult issues. It makes recommendations in the form of General Assembly
Resolutions. Decisions on important questions, such as those on peace and security, admission of new members
and budgetary matters, require a two-thirds majority, but other questions are decided by simple majority.

Preventive Diplomacy and Mediation

The most effective way to diminish human suffering and the massive economic costs of conflicts and their
aftermath is to prevent conflicts in the first place.  The United Nations plays an important role in conflict
prevention, using  diplomacy, good offices and mediation.  Among the tools the Organization uses to bring
peace are special envoys and political missions in the field.

Peacekeeping
Peacekeeping has proven to be one of the most effective tools available to the UN to assist host countries
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 the UN Headquarters in New York.
There are 14 UN peacekeeping operations currently deployed and there have been a total of 71 deployed since
1948. In 2019, the Secretary-General launched the Action for Peacekeeping Initiative (A4P) to renew mutual
political commitment to peacekeeping operations.

Peacebuilding
United Nations peacebuilding activities are aimed at assisting countries emerging from conflict, reducing the
risk of relapsing into conflict and at laying the foundation for sustainable peace and development. The UN
peacebuilding architecture comprises the Peacebuilding Commission, the Peacebuilding Fund and
the Peacebuilding Support Office. The Peacebuilding Support Office assists and supports the Peacebuilding
Commission with strategic advice and policy guidance, administers the Peacebuilding Fund and serves the
Secretary-General in coordinating United Nations agencies in their peacebuilding efforts.

Countering Terrorism
The United Nations is being increasingly called upon to coordinate the global fight against terrorism. Eighteen
universal instruments against international terrorism have been elaborated within the framework of the United
Nations system relating to specific terrorist activities.  In September 2006, UN Member States adopted the
United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy. This was the first time that Member States agreed to a
common strategic and operational framework against terrorism.

Disarmament
The General Assembly and other bodies of the United Nations, supported by the Office for Disarmament
Affairs, work to advance international peace and security through the pursuit of the elimination of nuclear
weapons and other weapons of mass destruction and the regulation of conventional arms.

OR

Peace and Security

Security Council

Over the decades, the UN has helped to end numerous conflicts, often through actions of the Security
Council — the organ with primary responsibility, under the United Nations Charter, for the maintenance of
international peace and security. When it receives a complaint about a threat to peace, the Council first
recommends that the parties seek an agreement by peaceful means. In some cases, the Council itself investigates
and mediates. It may appoint special representatives or request the Secretary-General to do so, or to use his
good offices. It may set forth principles for a peaceful settlement.

When a dispute leads to fighting, the Council's first concern is to end it as soon as possible. On many occasions,
the Council has issued ceasefire directives, which have helped to prevent major hostilities. It also deploys UN
peacekeeping operations to reduce tensions in troubled areas, keep opposing forces apart, and create conditions
for sustainable peace after settlements have been reached. The Council may decide on enforcement
measures, economic sanctions (such as trade embargoes) or collective military action.

General Assembly

According to the Charter, the General Assembly can make recommendations on the general principles of

cooperation for maintaining international peace and security, including disarmament, and for the peaceful
settlement of any situation that might impair friendly relations among nations. The General Assembly may also
discuss any question relating to international peace and security and make recommendations the Security
Council is not currently discussing the issue. 

Pursuant to its “Uniting for Peace” resolution of November 1950 (resolution 377 (V)), the General Assembly
may also take action if the Security Council fails to act, owing to the negative vote of a Permanent Member, in a
case where there appears to be a threat to, or breach of peace, or an act of aggression. The Assembly can
consider the matter immediately in order to make recommendations to Members for collective measures to
maintain, or restore, international peace and security.

Secretary-General

The Charter empowers the Secretary-General to "bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter which
in his opinion may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security." One of the most vital roles
played by the Secretary-General is the use of his "good offices" – steps taken publicly and in private that draw
upon his independence, impartiality and integrity to prevent international disputes from arising, escalating or
spreading.

Conflict Prevention

The main strategies to prevent disputes from escalating into conflict, and to prevent the recurrence of conflict,
are preventive diplomacy and preventive disarmament. Preventive diplomacy refers to action taken to prevent
disputes from arising or escalating into conflicts, and to limit the spread of conflicts as they arise. It may take
the form of mediation, conciliation or negotiation.

Preventive diplomacy
Early warning is an essential component of prevention, and the United Nations carefully monitors developments
around the world to detect threats to international peace and security, thereby enabling the Security Council and
the Secretary-General to carry out preventive action. Envoys and special representatives of the Secretary-
General are engaged in mediation and preventive diplomacy throughout the world. In some trouble spots, the
mere presence of a skilled envoy can prevent the escalation of tension. These envoys often cooperate with
regional organizations.

Preventive disarmament
Complementing preventive diplomacy is preventive disarmament, which seeks to reduce the number of small
arms in conflict-prone regions. In El Salvador, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Timor-Leste and elsewhere, this has
entailed demobilizing combat forces, as well as collecting and destroying their weapons as part of an overall
peace agreement. Destroying yesterday’s weapons prevents their use in tomorrow’s wars.

Preventing Genocide and Responsibility to Protect

Prevention requires apportioning responsibility and promoting collaboration between the concerned States and
the international community. The duty to prevent and halt genocide and mass atrocities lies first and foremost
with the State, but the international community has a role that cannot be blocked by the invocation of
sovereignty. Sovereignty no longer exclusively protects States from foreign interference; it is a charge of
responsibility where States are accountable for the welfare of their people. This principle is enshrined in article
1 of the Genocide Convention and embodied in the principle of “sovereignty as responsibility” and in the
concept of the Responsibility to Protect.

The Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide acts as a catalyst to raise awareness of the causes and
dynamics of genocide, to alert relevant actors where there is a risk of genocide, and to advocate and mobilize
for appropriate action. The Special Adviser on the Responsibility to Protect leads the conceptual, political,
institutional and operational development of the Responsibility to Protect. The efforts of their Office include
alerting relevant actors to the risk of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity,
enhancing the capacity of the United Nations to prevent these crimes, including their incitement.

Peacekeeping

United Nations peacekeeping operations are a vital instrument employed by the international community to
advance peace and security.

The first UN peacekeeping mission was established in 1948 when the Security Council authorized the
deployment of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) to the Middle East to monitor the
Armistice Agreement between Israel and its Arab neighbours. Since then, there have been more than 70 UN
peacekeeping operations around the world.

Over 70 years, UN peacekeeping has evolved to meet the demands of different conflicts and a changing
political landscape. Born at the time when Cold War rivalries frequently paralyzed the Security Council, UN
peacekeeping goals were primarily limited to maintaining ceasefires and stabilizing situations on the ground, so
that efforts could be made at the political level to resolve the conflict by peaceful means. 

UN peacekeeping expanded in the 1990s, as the end of the Cold War created new opportunities to end civil
wars through negotiated peace settlements. Many conflicts ended, either through direct UN mediation, or
through the efforts of others acting with UN support. Countries assisted included El
Salvador, Guatemala, Namibia, Cambodia, Mozambique, Tajikistan, and Burundi.  In the late nineties,
continuing crises led to new operations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Central African
Republic, Timor Leste, Sierra Leone and Kosovo.

In the new millennium, peacekeepers have been deployed to Liberia, Côte d'Ivoire, Sudan, South Sudan, Haiti,
and Mali.

Today's conflicts are less numerous but deeply rooted. For example, the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
Darfur, and South Sudan today, are in a second or third wave of conflict. And many are complicated by regional
dimensions that are key to their solution. In fact, some two-thirds of peacekeeping personnel today are deployed
amid ongoing conflict, where peace agreements are shaky or absent. Conflicts today are also increasingly
intensive, involving determined armed groups with access to sophisticated armaments and techniques.

The nature of conflict has also changed over the years. UN peacekeeping, originally developed as a means of
resolving inter-State conflict, has been increasingly applied over time to intra-State conflicts and civil wars.
Although the military remains the backbone of most peacekeeping operations, today’s peacekeepers perform a
variety of complex tasks, from helping to build sustainable institutions of governance, through human rights
monitoring and security sector reform, to the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of former
combatants, and demining.

Peacebuilding

Within the United Nations, peacebuilding refers to efforts to assist countries and regions in their transitions
from war to peace and to reduce a country's risk of lapsing or relapsing into conflict by strengthening national
capacities for conflict management, and laying the foundations for sustainable peace and development.
Building lasting peace in war-torn societies is a daunting challenge for global peace and security. Peacebuilding
requires sustained international support for national efforts across the broadest range of activities. For instance,
peacebuilders monitor ceasefires, demobilize and reintegrate combatants, assist the return of refugees and
displaced persons, help to organize and monitor elections of a new government, support justice and security
sector reforms, enhance human rights protections, and foster reconciliation after past atrocities.

Peacebuilding involves action by a wide array of organizations of the UN system, including the World Bank,
regional economic commissions, NGOs and local citizens’ groups. Peacebuilding has played a prominent role
in UN operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Kosovo, Liberia and
Mozambique, as well as more recently in Afghanistan, Burundi, Iraq, Sierra Leone and Timor-Leste. An
example of inter-state peacebuilding has been the UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea.

Recognizing that the UN needs to better anticipate and respond to the challenges of peacebuilding, the 2005
World Summit approved the creation of a new Peacebuilding Commission. In the resolutions establishing
the Peacebuilding Commission, resolution 60/180 and resolution 1645 (2005), the UN General Assembly and
the Security Council mandated it to bring together all relevant actors to advise on the proposed integrated
strategies for post-conflict peacebuilding and recovery; to marshal resources and help ensure predictable
financing for these activities; and to develop best practices in collaboration with political, security, humanitarian
and development actors.

The resolutions also identify the need for the Commission to extend the period of international attention on
post-conflict countries, and where necessary, highlight any gaps which threaten to undermine peacebuilding.

The General Assembly and Security Council resolutions establishing the Peacebuilding Commission also
provided for the establishment of a Peacebuilding Fund and a Peacebuilding Support Office.

Note about League of Nations

INTRODUCTION

The League of Nation with acronym “LN” was an organization formed immediately after the 1919 Paris
Peace Conference. The following were the objectives of the LN;

 Disarmament
 Preventing war through collective security
 Using negotiation diplomacy to settle disputes between countries
 Improving global welfare

The League of Nations didn’t have security forces of its own but however depended largely on great power
countries to keep economic sanctions and enforced its resolutions. The great power countries provided the army
for the League to use when needed. However, these countries often feel reluctant to deploy their armed forces
for the League to use.

After some early failures and notable successes in the 1920s, the League of Nations in the 1930s proved
incapable of preventing the great powers from always attacking smaller states.
The Second World War is another testament to the fact that the League had failed in its primary responsibility –
to prevent any future world war.After the World War II, the United Nations Organization replaced the League
and inherented several of its agencies and organizations.

ORIGIN OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS

The concept of peaceful community nations had been described by Immanuel Kant in his book “Perpetual
Peace: a Philosophical Sketch in 1795.” In order to avoid a bloody war like the World War I, the thought of
forming the League of Nation was conceived by Edward Grey, a British Foreign Secretary and subsequently
adopted by Woodrow Wilson, the Democratic US president, as well as his advisor Col. Edward House.
Wilson’s 14 points agenda for peace centered on the creation of the League, which specifically seek to create a
community of Nations for the purpose of guiding territorial integrity both for great powers and smaller states.

The proposal to create the League was accepted by the Paris Peace Conference on the 25th of January. The
League’s covenant was subsequently drafted by a commission. The treaty of Versailles, Part l, established the
League after the treaty’s signature on the 28th of June, 1919.

Despite the effort by the United States president to promote the League of Nations, which he was subsequently
awarded a Noble Peace price in the same year, America didn’t wasn’t a member of the League due to
opposition from members of the American Senate led by Henry Lodge and Williams Borah.

The League’s first meeting held on the 10th of January 1920 in London. The League’s first action was to end
World War l by ratifying the Treaty of Versailles. On November 1, 1920, the League’s headquarters was moved
to Geneva, Switzerland, where its first general assembly was held with 41 Nations in attendance.

LEAGUE OF NATIONS’ SYMBOL

The League didn’t have any official logo or flag. Although, there was a proposal for the League to adopt a
symbol in 1920, but the proposal was not adopted member states. However, the League made use of several
flags and logos in their operations. In 1929, there was an international content to decide on a symbol’s design,
but yet again, the contest failed.

 The major reason for this failure might not be unconnected with the fact that member states feared that their
powers might be upsurged by the League of Nations Organization. Finally, a semi-official flag emerged in
1939: 2 by 5 pointed stars within a blue pentagon. The flag was named in French (Société des Nations) and
English (League of Nations). The New York World’s Fair hosted the flag in 1939 as well as 1940.

 LEAGUE OF NATIONS’ LANGUAGE

From 1920, the League’s official languages were English, French, and Spain. There was a proposal in the early
1920 for the League to adopt Esperanto as one of its working languages. The proposal was accepted by 10
delegates and rejected by Gabriel Honataux, a French delegate. His reason for rejecting the proposal was that
the French language was losing its grip as the international diplomacy language and saw the inclusion of
Esperanto as a threat. The League of Nation later recommended the inclusion of Esperanto into the educational
curriculum of member states two years later.
 LEAGUE OF NATIONS’ ORGAN OR STRUCTURE

LN had three fundamental organs – A council, a secretariat based in Geneva and headed by the General
Secretary, and an Assembly. The League of Nations also had several commissions and agencies. For any action
to be taken, a unanimous vote must be adopted by both the Council and the Assembly.

The following are the detailed explanations of the League’s 3 organs:

Secretariat

The Secretariat’s staff members were saddled with the responsibility of preparing the Assembly and Council’s
agenda. The staff also published the reports of the meetings. Basically, the Secretariat’s staff members acted as
the League’s civic service. Between 1920 and 1946 which the League existed, three Secretaries Generals
headed the League’s Secretariat. The Secretaries Generals were;

 (1920-1933) Sir James Eric Drummond, 7th Earl of Perth (UK)

 (1933-1940) Joseph Avenol (France)
 (1940-1946) Seán Lester (Ireland)

The League’s Pioneer president was Paul Hymans. He was a politician from Belgium. The responsibility of the
General Secretary was to wrote annual reports on the activities of the League.

Council

The responsibility of the League’s Council was to handle any matter affecting world peace. The League’s
Council began with 4 permanent members (from Italy, France, Japan, and the United Kingdom), and 4 non-
permanent members that were elected by the Assembly for a tenure of three years.

The 4 non-permanent members were from Spain, Greece, Belgium, and Brazil. The US was supposed to be the
5th non-permanent member, but due the opposition by the US Senate against the signing of the Treaty of
Versailles, the US lost its membership position.

On the 22nd of September 1922, the number of non-permanent members rose to six and subsequently rose to
nine on the 8th of September, 1926. After a while, Germany joined the League as the 5th non-permanent
members, pushing the total number of members to 15. Japan and Germany later resigned their membership
position.

On the average, the Council held meeting at least 5 times a year. Between 1920 and 1939, the number of public
sessions held by the League was 107.

Assembly

The League’s Assembly had a representation from each member states and had one vote. The Assembly usually
held its session only once a year in the month of September.
The League’s Council president at its 68th session in September 1932 was Éamon de Valera. He also doubled
as the President of the League’s Assembly in 1938. In 1939 and 1946, the Assembly’s President was Carl
Joachim Hambro. Nicolae Titulescu served as the League’s president for 2 terms between 1930 and 1931.

Other bodies

The League of Nations coordinated several agencies, commissions, as well as the Permanent Court of
International Justice created to tackle pressing international issues. The other bodies were;

 The Disarmament Commission

 The Health Organization
 The International Labour Organization
 The Mandates Commission
 The Permanent Central Opium Board
 The Commission for Refugees
 The Slavery Commission.

Even though the League was touted to have failed, some of its agencies and commission recorded a lot of
successes within their Jurisdiction.

 Disarmament Commission

In order to limit the size of their navies, the commission obtained an initial agreement by Italy, France, Britain,
and Japan. However, the UK rejected the idea of signing a disarmament Treaty in 1923 and the Kellogg-Briand
Pact, which the commission facilitated in 1928. Ultimately, the armaments commission didn’t live up to
expectation.

Health Committee

The Health Committee was created to end leprosy, yellow fever, and malaria. The committee launched an
international campaign against mosquitoes and succeeded in preventing the spread of typhus across Europe.

Mandates Commission

The commission was in charge of supervising the League’s mandate. The mandate commission also organized
plebiscites in order to settle territories that were in disputes.

International Labour Organization

The head of this body was Albert Thomas. The body was able to convince a lot of countries to adopt a 40hrs
weekly working routine. In addition, its worked to end child labor.

Permanent Central Opium Board

The essence of establishing this board was to supervise the production, retail and trade of opium and its allied
products.
Commission for Refugees

The Commission for Refugees was headed by Fridtjof Nansen. The commission was saddled with the
responsibility of repatriating and resettling over 400,000 ex-prisoners and refugees, most of whom were
displaced after the World War l.

Slavery Commission

The Slavery Commission was established to eradicate the slave trade and slavery across the world. The
commission also fought drug trafficking and forced prostitution, especially in Opium. The commission
suceeded in emancipating over 200,000 slaves in Sierra Leone and raided slave traders in an effort to stop the
practices of the slave trade in Africa.

 FUNCTIONS OR RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS

The following are the responsibilities of the league of nations;

 A reduction on national armaments to the lowest point.

 To protect the interest of all members of the league
 To peaceful settle international disputes
 To enthrone peaceful change with respect to international change
 Maintenance of international security and peace

CAUSES OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS FAILURE

The following are some of the events which led to the failure of the league of nations;

 The 1923 attack on Corfu (a suburb in Greece) by the Italians.

 The 1931 attack on Manchuria by Japan.
 The 1935 attack on Ethiopia by Italy
 The 1939 invasion of Finland by the Russians.
 The failure of the disarmament conference organized in 1932 at the behest of the League of Nation.

OR

CAUSES OF FAILURE OF LEAGUE OF NATIONS

League Of Nations was created after WWI and was first comprehensive organization which came into
existence on Jan.10 1920. with hopes that this organization may provide a forum to nations where they
can settle out their disputes at International level and can prevent world from another war.

The success of League of Nations can be judge on the basis of its handling disputes and international conflicts
incidents. The authenticity of any organization can be checked by its utility of solving political and social
issues.
During 1920's League provided a useful but modest addition to international diplomacy where round of
negotiations and diplomatic relations develop. Stress was made on sitting together of nations for the settlement
of disputes. Security was provided to frontiers and problems of Disarmaments was solved.

but unfortunately League was helping and solving matters of minor states because of influence of BIG
POWERS on world League failed to implement its will on them which gave a true picture of its contradiction of
covenant.

League failed in its main object of maintaining peace in the world . Inspite of its efforts for two decades , the
whole world was involved in a war in 1939. By that time , the machinery of the League Of Nations had
completely broken down.

The failure of League Of Nations can be attributed to many causes.

They are :

1. Absence Of Great Powers :

It was unfortunate that the covenant of the League of Nations was made a part parcel of the peace settlement. It
would have been better if it had kept separate. There were many states which consider the Treaty Of Versailles
as a treaty of revenge, and were not prepared to ratify the same. By not retifying the treaty , they refused to be
the members of the League.

The absence of the great powers from the international organization weakened her and was partly responsible
for its ultimate failure. Japan , Germany and Italy also left the League and their defection must have weakened
the League.

2. Domination Of France and England :

It was felt that the League Of Nations was dominated by England and France and consequently the other states
began to loose their confidence in that organization.

3. Rise Of Dictatorship :

The rise of dictatorship in Italy, Japan and Germany also weakened the chances of success of the League of
Nations . Japan was determined to acquire fresh territories and her unscrupulous patriotism threw to the winds
of all principles of international law and morality. If the League was to prepared to condone her fault of
conquering Manchuria . She was to prepared to give up her membership of the League and that is exactly what
she actually did. When League decided to take action against Italy on account for her aggression in Abyssinia ,
Italy left the League. In the wake up spreading dictatorship states continued to be the members of the League so
long as their national interest were not in any way endangered and sacrificed.

4. Limitations Of Legal Methods :

The League Of Nations demonstrated the limitations of the legal methods.

The League was fairly efficient in structure and probably would have worked if there had existed a realization
of a community of interest.
Law grows out of public opinion can not operate in disjunction with it. In the case of League law proposed and
opinion disposed.

According to Lincoln:

“Public sentiment is everything. With public sentiment nothing can be fail ; without it nothing can be succeed. “

5. Loss Of Faith In League:

Small nations lost their faith in the effectiveness of The League to save them from any aggression.
The principle of collective security was not applied in actual practice. Each state decided to follow her own
policy , the principle of security weakened and thus there was nothing to check the aggressive policy of Hitler.

6. Constitutional Defect :

The League Of Nations failed because of certain constitutional defects. In the cases of disputes brought before
the council of the League under Article 11, decisions of the council had to be unanimous in order to adjudge a
nation guilty of having violated the covenant by resort to war or unjustifiable aggression, In Article 15. If the
decisions were not unanimous verdict under Article 11, the disputing parties were free to resume the hostilities
after a period of 3 months. By allowing exceptions , the covenant seemed to assumed that was remained the
normal solution of international disputes.

7. Narrow Nationalism :

Narrow nationalism was still the dominant among the peoples of the world. France was increasingly concerned
with her national security , while Great Britain considered that problem less urgent than promoting commerce
by fostering international trade. Japan intoxicated by her emergence as a world power , while Italy was
desperate to redress her damage . Germany was indulge to retain her national prestige even at the cost of an
aggressive military adventure.
8. Lack Of Mutual Co-Operation :

The member of the league lack mutual co-operation which is always essential for the success of an organization.
For France the League was an instrument for providing her security from Germany.
On the other hand Great Britain wanted League protecting her imperialist interest .
Hitler found League a great hurdle on the way of rise of Germany.

9. Separate Lines Of Thoughts :

The League was the offspring of a marriage of two separate lines of thoughts.
In one of these which were developed my Mr. Taft and others in the U.S. The stress was on organized forces.
There has to be “League of enforced peace”

On the other hand the British attitude was extremely hessistant in its approach to the nation os enforced peace.

If the fourteen points of Woodrow Wilson are consulted we find that a general association of nation is projected
“ for the purpose of affording mutual gurantees of political independence and territorial integrity”

In its proposal the world peace is not mentioned and international co-operation is restricted to one limited
object.
These two inconsistent principles were incorporated in the fabric of the League itself and no wonder it failed.
10. Manchurian Crisis :

On the night of Sep. 18-19, 1931 some Japanese soldiers making an attempt to blow off the railway line near
Mukdan .Japan took full advantage of this minor incident and on the 18th Sep.1931 She invaded Manchuria and
also occupied all Japanese cities north of Mukdan.
League of Nations failed to implement sanctions on Japan and on March 27 , 1933 Japan decided to withdraw
her membership of League of Nation.

CONCLUSION:

According to most of the thinkers , existence of League Of Nations was at wrong time .
Then , all the nations was indulge in the concept of narrow nationalism and sovereignty. Situation would have
been much more different had except the concept of Internationalism .

It is wrong to believe League Of Nations done nothing , it paved the way of United Nations Organizations

“It was not League Of Nations but Nations Of League that failed . “

THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS DEFECTS OR WEAKNESSES

The League of Nations didn’t perform well in the following areas;

 The council’s decision was unanimously taken, resulting in the failure of the league
 The League’s covenant simply imposed restrictions instead of totally prohibiting wars.
 America wasn’t a member of the League despite the effort of the then American president Wilson.
 The League’s covenant clearly mentioned that any member of the League can exit if the covenant
was no longer acceptable by members.
 The League made a provision for members’ withdrawal. The League started with 62 members, after a
while, it reduced to 32 due to this provision.
 The League’s council were incompetent in terms of peacefully settling international disputes.
 The league couldn’t prevail on great powers to stop attaching smaller countries.
 There was discrimination between great powers and smaller countries.
 The great power countries were always selfish and self-centered
 The League didn’t live up to its responsibility of establishing peace