International Treaties And Organisations

UNO

UN had its origin in August, 1944 at Dumbarton Oaks Conference where the representatives of USA, UK, USSR and China met to form an association for the maintenance of international peace and security. Finally, on June 26, 1945, the charter of the United Nations was signed in a conference called at “San Fransisco”, which included the representatives of 51 states. The charter then came into force on 24 Octobar, 1945; thus 24 October has been celebrated as the UN day. Headquarters, Flag, Languages: United Nation’s Headquarter is situated in Manhattan Island of New York and the European office at Geneva.The Flag of the UNO was adopted in Octobar 1947. The flag includes white UN emblem (two bent olive branches, open at the top and between them is the world map) on a light blue background. the flag was adopted by the UNO in Octobar, 1947. Official Language of UNO are French, Chinese, English, Russian, Arabic and Spanish. While the working languages are only French and English.
Aims and Objectives of UNO: The main objectives of UNO are:
To maintain international peace and security.
To develop spirit of co-operation and friendly relations among the nations.
To promote respect for human rights, dignity and freedom.
To solve international problems of social, economic, agricultural and humanitarian character.
To employ international machinery for the promotion of economic and social advancement of all people.

International Monetary Fund (IMF) : HQ – Washington, D.C. The IMF came into existence in December 1945, as one among the Bretton Wood twins when the first 29 countries signed its Articles of Agreement. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an international organisation that oversees the global financial system by observing exchange rates and balance of payments. An unwritten rule establishes that the IMF’s managing director must be non-Italian European and that the president of the World Bank must be from the United States. IMF describes itself as “an organisation of 185 countries, Montenegro being the 185th as of January 18th, 2007.

Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) : HQ–Rome, Italy. The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. FAO was founded on 16 October 1945, in Quebec City, Canada. In 1951 its hadquarters were moved from Washington, D.C., United States, to Rome, Italy. As of 17 November 2007, it had 191 members (plus one member organisation, the European Community and one associate member, the Faroe Islands).

International Labour Organisation (ILO) : HQ-Geneva, Switzerland. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that deals with labour issues. Founded in 1919, it was formed through the negotiations of the Treaty of Versailles, and was initially an agency of the League of Nations. The ILO hosts the International Labour Conference in Geneva every year in June. The organisation received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1969. Its secretariat is known as the International Labour Office. Its a tripartite intergovernmental body of governments, employers and workers.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) : HQ-Paris, France. UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) is a specialized agency of the United Nations established in 1945. Its stated purpose is to contribute to peace and security by promoting international collaboration through education, science, and culture in order to further universal respect for justice, the rule of law, and the human rights and fundamental freedoms proclaimed in the UN Charter. As of October 2007, UNESCO had 193 member states and 6 associate members.

World Health Organisation (WHO) : HQ-Geneva, Switzerland. The World Health Organisation (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordianting authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health Organization, which had been an agency of the League of Nations. WHO complies the widely followed International Classification of Diseases (ICD).

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) : HQ-Vienna, Austria. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was established as an autonomous organisation on July 29, 1957. It seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for military purposes. United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower envisioned, in his “Atoms for Peace” speech before the UN General Assembly in 1953, the creation of this international body to control and develop the use of atomic energy.

World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) : HQ–Geneva, Switzerland. The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations. It is the UN system’s authoritative voice on the state and behaviour of the Earth’s atmosphere, its interaction with the oceans, and the climate produces or the resulting distribution of water resources. It originated from the International Meteorological Organisation (IMO), which was founded in 1873. Established in 1950, WMO became the specialized agency of the United Nations for meteorology (weather and climate), operational hydrology and related geophysical sciences. The WMO helped create the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). It is also directly responsible for the creation of the Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW).

Interpol (International Criminal Police Organisation) : HQ–Lyon, France Established as International Criminal Police Commission in 1923 to assist international criminal police co-operation. Its work focuses primarily on public safety, terrorism, organised crime etc. It is the world’s third largest international organisation after UN and FIFA.

International Court of Justice (ICJ) : HQ-The Hague, The Netherlands The International Court of Justice (known colloquially as the World Court or ICJ) is the primary judicial organ of the United Nations. Established in 1945 by the Charter of the United Nations, the Court began work in 1946 as the successor to the Permanent Court of International Justice. The ICJ is composed of 15 judges elected to nine year terms by the UN General Assembly and the UN Security Council from a list of persons, nominated by the national groups in the Permanent Court of Arbitration. All 192 UN members are automatically parties to the Court’s statute. Article 94 establishes the duty of all UN members to comply with decisions of the Court involving them. If parties do not comply, the issue may be taken before the Security Council for enforcement action. It conducts its business in English and French.

International Criminal Court (ICC) : HQ–The Hague, The Netherlands. It is a court created under the Rome Statute of 2002 as an independent, permanent court that tries persons accused of the most serious crimes of international concern, namely genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. The ICC is based on a treaty, joined by 104 countries. The ICC s a court of last resort. It will not act if a case is investigated or prosecuted by a national judicial system unless the national proceedings are not genuine. In addition, the ICC only tries those accused of the gravest crimes.

Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) : HQ–The Hague, The Netherlands. The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is an international agency. Its mission is to promote membership of the Chemical Weapons Convention treaty which entered into force in 1997 and mandated the elimination of “the scourge of chemical weapons forever and to verify the destruction of the declared chemical weapons stockpiles within stipulated deadlines”.

United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) : HQ–New York City, USA The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) was created on December 11, 1946. In 1953, its name was shortened from United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund. UNICEF provides long-term humanitarian and developmental assistance to children and mothers in developing countries. UNICEF was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1965.

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) : HQ–Vienna, Austria. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is a United Nations agency which was founded in 1997 as the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention with the intent to fight drugs and crime on an international level. This intent is fulfilled through three primary functions: research, lobbying state government to adopt various crime and drug based laws and treaties and assistance of said governments on the ground level. In October 2002, the United Nations Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) was merged into the UNODC.
World Trade Organisation (WTO) : HQ–Geneva, Switzerland.

The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is an international organisation that establishes rules for international trade through consensus among its member states. It also resolves disputes between the members, which are all signatories to its set of trade agreements. Uruguay Round of General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), negotiations culminating in the Marrakesh Agreement that established the WTO. There are 151 member states in the organisation, the latest to join being Tonga on July 27, 2007. Since its inception in 1995, the WTO has been a major focus for protests by civil society groups in many countries.

International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement : HQ–Geneva, Switzerland. The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is an international humanitarian movement founded in 1863, whose stated mission is to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for the human being, and to prevent and alleviate human suffering, without any discrimination based on nationality, race, religious beliefs, class or political opinions. It adopted a new symbol a hollowed out red crystal on a white background in addition to the present symbols of red cross (1863) and red cresent (1876). Red star of David was used by Israel till now. Awarded the Nobel Peace prize in three times –1917, 1944 and 1963.

Asian Development Bank (ADB) : HQ–Manila, Philippines. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank established in 1966 to promote economic and social development in Asian and Pacific countries through loans and technical assistance. It is a multilateral development financial institution owned by 66 members, 47 from the region and 19 from other parts of the globe. ADB’s vision is a region free of poverty. Its mission is to help its developing member countries reduce poverty and improve the quality of life of their citizens. The highest policy-making body of the bank is the Board of Governors composed of one representative from each member state. The Board of Governors also elect the bank’s President who is the chairperson of the Board of Directors and manages ADB. Traditionally, and because Japan is one of the largest shareholders of the bank, the President has always been Japanese.

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) : HQ–Jakarta, Indonesia. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a geopolitial and economic organisation of 10 countries, located in Southeast Asia. ASEAN was established on 8 August, 1967 in Bangkok by the five original Member Countries namely–Indonesia, Malaysia, Phillippines, Singapore, and Thailand. Brunei Darussalam joined on 8 January 1984, Vietnam on 28 July 1995, Lao PDR and Myanmar on 23 July 1997, and Cambodia on 30 April 1999.

South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) : HQ–Kathmandu, Nepal. South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is the largest regional organisation in the world by population, covering approximately 1.5 billion people. SAARC is an economic and political organisation of eight countries in Southern Asia. The organisation was established on December 8, 1985 by India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives and Bhutan. Afghanistan became a member (eighth) on April 3, 2007. It declared 2006–2015 as the’SAARC decade of poverty alleviation’. It was agreed in principle to the desire of China and Japan to become SAARC obsevers. The Islamic Republic of Iran is the only country in Southern Asia that is not a part of SAARC. In April 2006, the United States of America and South Korea made formal requests to be granted observer status. The European Union has also indicated interest in being given observer status, and made a formal request for the same to the SAARC Council of Ministers meeting in July 2006. On August 2nd, 2006 Foreign ministers of SAARC countries agreed in principle to grant observer status to the US, South Korea and the European Union.

Group of 77 (G-77) : HQ–New York, USA The Group of 77 at the United Nations is a loose coalition of developing nations, designed to promote its members’ collectives, economic and interest to create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the United Nations. There were 77 founding members of the organisation, but the organisation has since expanded to 130 member countries. It is modelled on the Group of 7, which now contains 8 countries. The group was founded on June 15, 1964 by the “Joint Declaration of the Seventy Seven Countries” issued at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

Intergovernmental Group of Twenty Four (G-24) : HQ–Washington D.C., USA The Intergovernmental Group of Twenty-Four on International Monetary Affairs and Development (G-24) was established in 1971. Its main objective is to concert the position of developing countries on monetary and development of finance issues. It consists of countries from three regions of Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean and Asia.

Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) : HQ–Vienna, Austria. The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is a permanent, intergovernmental Organisation, created at the Baghdad Conference on September 10-14, 1960, by Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela. The five Founding Members were later joined by nine other Members Indonesia’s membership currently under review as Indonesia is no longer considered by OPEC as a net oil exporter. Former Members are Gabon (full member from 1975 to 1995) and Ecuador (full member from 1963 to 1993). However Ecuador has expressed interest in rejoining. OPEC’s official language is English, although the official language of a majority of OPEC member-states is Arabic, as seven current members are Arab states. Only one member nation (Nigeria) has English as an official language. From 1976-2006 OPEC gained on new member nations. In November 2006, the Angolan Government announced its intention to apply for membership and subsequently joined on 1st January 2007. Sudan has also expressed intent for joining. Russia, though a net exporter of oil, has failed to gain membership into the grouping.

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) : HQ–Singapore. The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is an economic forum for a group of Pacific Rim countries to discuss matters on regional economy, cooperation, trade and investment. The current membership of APEC consists of 21 members, which includes most countries with a coasting on the Pacific Ocean. the last countries to have joined APEC, during its sixth leader’s summit in Kualalumpur, November 1998 were Peru, Russia and Vietnam.

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) : HQ–Brussels, Belgium. The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) also called the North Atlantic Alliance, the Atlantic Alliance, the Western Alliance, is a military alliance established by the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty on 4 April 1949. The organisation establishes a system of collective security whereby its member states agree to mutual defense in response to an attack by any external party. The Treaty of Brussels, signed on 17 March 1948 by Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France and the United Kingdom is considered the precursor to the NATO agreement. The 2006 NATO summit was held in Riga, Latvia, which had joined the Atlantic Alliance two years earlier. It is the first NATO summit in a former COMECON country. Membership went on expanding with the accession of seven more European countries to NATO–Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania and also Slovenia, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Romania thereby taking the membership to 26. These 7 countries joined NATO on 29 march 2004.

Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) : HQ–Minsk, Belarus. The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is the international organization, or alliance, consisting of 11 former Soviet Republics: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan and one associate member. Turkmenistan discontinued permanent membership as of August 26, 2005 and is now an associate member. The CIS is not a confederation. On December 21, 1991, the leaders of 11 of the 15 constituent republics of the Soviet Union met in Almata, Kazakhstan, and signed the charter, thus de facto ratifying the initial CIS treaty and launching the organisation.