Understanding the United Nations and International Law

Posted on Mar 13, 2025 in Law & Jurisprudence

The United Nations: Structure and Organs

The United Nations (UN) has several principal organs:

  • Security Council: Responsible for maintaining international peace and security. It has 15 members, including five permanent members: Russia, China, France, the United States of America, and the United Kingdom.
  • General Assembly: The main representative and deliberative body, often described as the parliamentary body of the UN. Proposals adopted by the General Assembly are resolutions.
  • Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC): A platform for advancing economic and social issues.
  • International Court of Justice (ICJ): The principal judicial organ, based in The Hague.
  • Secretariat: Carries out the substantive and administrative work of the UN.
  • Trusteeship Council: (Note: Its operations were suspended in 1994).

All these organs were established at the beginning of the UN.

Key Concepts in Public International Law

Sources and Principles

  • International law is *not* solely created by International Organizations.
  • Naturalism is *not* called “consent theory.”
  • According to Positivism, law and justice are *not* the same thing.
  • The UN Charter sets out the fundamental principles of modern public international law.
  • The essential structure of international law was mapped out during the European Renaissance.
  • The origin of modern international law is usually dated to the collapse of the Roman Empire.
  • The concept of natural rights has special significance since the 20th century.
  • The origin of the idea of a sovereign nation-state dates from the Peace of Westphalia.
  • Human rights became a main concern of international law in the 20th century.
  • The origins of international organizations are in the 19th century.

Foundational Figures and Principles

  • Hugo Grotius organized a systematic body of law applicable between states for the first time in history.
  • The father of international law is Hugo Grotius.
  • Peaceful settlement of international disputes is a fundamental principle of international law, with a peremptory character (jus cogens).
  • Recognition of a state does *not* imply the recognition of its government.
  • Adoption of common rules for multinational activities is one of the purposes of international law.
  • International law is a legal system based on reciprocity and consensus.

Treaties and Declarations

  • Declarations of a treaty clarify a state’s position related to the treaty.
  • “Treaty” is a generic term.
  • Declarations do *not* refer to the formal alteration of treaty provisions.

Sources of International Law

  • Primary Sources: Treaties, International Custom (the oldest source), General Principles of Law.
  • Subsidiary Sources: Judicial decisions, scholarly writings.
  • Opinio Juris is reflected in the acts and omissions of states.
  • International tribunals include permanent tribunals and ad hoc tribunals.
  • UN General Assembly Resolutions are considered “soft law.”
  • National law does *not* arise exclusively from the government’s will.

Purposes and Actors

  • The purposes of Public International Law (PIL) include the adoption of common rules for multinational activities.
  • The UN Security Council was *not* intended to function as a parliamentary forum.
  • In the international arena, states are potentially more democratic actors than corporations.
  • There is *no* international convention on the nature and law of NGOs.
  • UN specialized agencies enter into relationships with the UN through negotiated agreements.
  • Multinational corporations (MNCs) are not fully regulated in international law.
  • The first UN human rights treaty is the Genocide Convention.

International Organizations

  • The UN is an Intergovernmental Organization (IGO).
  • International organizations have a constitution.
  • An international organization must possess at least one organ with a will distinct from that of its member states.
  • The Holy See is recognized as a sovereign subject of international law.
  • A people-based approach opens the way for non-state actors to play a role in building global society.
  • The current aim of public international law is *not* simply to create an orderly system of international relations, but also to promote justice, human rights and sustainable development.
  • International organizations are governed by the principle of speciality.
  • Intergovernmental organizations are composed of states.
  • The G-8 was not created by a treaty and is not an International Organization.

Sovereignty and Statehood

  • The sovereignty principle means that no state can be subject to the will of another state.
  • The most important value that nation-states should pursue is respect for human rights.
  • “International community” does *not* simply mean humankind.
  • A state’s territory is a basic element of statehood.
  • The Lotus case considers international law as principles in force between states.