·
Preamble
·
Chapter I. Purposes and principles, articles 1-2
·
Chapter II. Membership, articles 3-6
·
Chapter III. Organs, articles 7-8
·
Chapter IV. The General Assembly, articles 9-22
·
Chapter V. The Security Council, articles 23-32
·
Chapter VI. Pacific settlement of disputes, articles 33-38
·
Chapter VII. Action with respect to threats to the peace,
breaches of the peace, and acts of aggression, articles 39-51
·
Chapter
VIII. Regional arrangements, articles 52-54
·
Chapter IX. International economic and social co-operation,
articles 55-60
·
Chapter X. The Economic and Social Council, articles 61-72
·
Chapter XI. Declaration regarding non-self-governing
territories, articles 73-74
·
Chapter XII. International trusteeship system, articles 75-85
·
Chapter XIII. The Trusteeship Council, articles 86-91
·
Chapter XIV. The International Court of Justice, articles 92-96
·
Chapter XV. The Secretariat, articles 97-101
·
Chapter XVI. Miscellaneous provisions, articles 102-105
·
Chapter XVII. Transitional security arrangements, articles 106-107
·
Chapter XVIII. Amendments, articles 108-109
·
Chapter XIX. Ratification and signature, articles 110-111
·
Declarations of
acceptance of the obligations
contained in the Charter of the United Nations (Admission of States to
membership in the United Nations in accordance with Article 4 of the Charter,
currently 185 Member States).
Introduction
The Charter of the United Nations was signed on 26 June 1945, in San
Francisco, at the conclusion of the United Nations Conference on International
Organization, and came into force on 24 October 1945. The Statute of the
International Court of Justice is an integral part of the Charter.
Amendments to Articles 23, 27 and 61 of the Charter were adopted by
the General Assembly on 17 December 1963 and came into force on 31 August 1965.
A further amendment to Article 61 was adopted by the General Assembly on 20
December 1971, and came into force 0n 24 September 1973. An amendment to
Article 109, adopted by the General Assembly on 20 December 1965, came into
force on 12 June 1968.
The amendment to Article 23 enlarges the membership of the Security
Council from eleven to fifteen. The amended Article 27 provides that decisions
of the Security Council on procedural matters shall be made by an affirmative
vote of nine members (formerly seven) and on all other matters by an
affirmative vote of nine members (formerly seven), including the concurring
votes of the five permanent members of the Security Council.
The amendment to Article 61, which entered into force on 31 August
1965, enlarged the membership of the Economic and Social Council from eighteen
to twenty-seven. The subsequent amendment to that Article, which entered into
force on 24 September 1973, further increased the membership of the Council
from twenty-seven to fifty-four.
The amendment to Article 109, which relates to the first paragraph of
that Article, provides that a General Conference of Member States for the
purpose of reviewing the Charter may be held at a date and place to be fixed by
a two-thirds vote of the members of the General Assembly and by a vote of any
nine members (formerly seven) of the Security Council. Paragraph 3 of Article
109, which deals with the consideration of a possible review conference during
the tenth regular session of the General Assembly, has been retained in its
original form in its reference to a "vote, of any seven members of the
Security Council", the paragraph having been acted upon in 1955 by the
General Assembly, at its tenth regular session, and by the Security Council.
to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in
our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and
to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and
worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations
large and small, and
to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the
obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be
maintained, and
to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger
freedom,
to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as
good neighbors, and
to unite our strength to maintain international peace and security,
and
to ensure by the acceptance of principles and the institution of
methods, that armed force shall not be used, save in the common interest, and
to employ international machinery for the promotion of the economic
and social advancement of all peoples,
Accordingly, our respective Governments, through representatives
assembled in the city of San Francisco, who have exhibited their full powers
found to be in good and due form, have agreed to the present Charter of the
United Nations and do hereby establish an international organization to be
known as the United Nations.
Article 1
The Purposes of the United Nations are:
1. To maintain international peace and security, and to that end: to
take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to
the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression or other breaches of
the peace, and to bring about by peaceful means, and in conformity with the
principles of justice and international law, adjustment or settlement of
international disputes or situations which might lead to a breach of the peace;
2. To develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for
the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, and to take
other appropriate measures to strengthen universal peace;
3. To achieve international cooperation in solving international
problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character, and in
promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms
for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion; and
4. To be a center for harmonizing the actions of nations in the
attainment of these common ends.
The Organization and its Members, in pursuit of the Purposes stated in
Article 1, shall act in accordance with the following Principles.
1. The Organization is based on the principle of the sovereign
equality of all its Members.
2. All Members, in order to ensure to all of them the rights and
benefits resulting from membership, shall fulfill in good faith the obligations
assumed by them in accordance with the present Charter.
3. All Members shall settle their international disputes by peaceful
means in such a manner that international peace and security, and justice, are
not endangered.
4. All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the
threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political
independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the
Purposes of the United Nations.
5. All Members shall give the United Nations every assistance in any
action it takes in accordance with the present Charter, and shall refrain from
giving assistance to any state against which the United Nations is taking
preventive or enforcement action.
6. The Organization shall ensure that states which are not Members of
the United Nations act in accordance with these Principles so far as may be
necessary for the maintenance of international peace and security.
7. Nothing contained in the present Charter shall authorize the United
Nations to intervene in matters which are essentially within the domestic
jurisdiction of any state or shall require the Members to submit such matters
to settlement under the present Charter; but this principle shall not prejudice
the application of enforcement measures under Chapter VII.
Membership
The original Members of the United Nations shall be the states which,
having participated in the United Nations Conference on International
Organization at San Francisco, or having previously signed the Declaration by
United Nations of January 1, 1942, sign the present Charter and ratify it in
accordance with Article 110.
1. Membership in the United Nations is open to all other peace-loving
states which accept the obligations contained in the present Charter and, in
the judgment of the Organization, are able and willing to carry out these
obligations.
2. The admission of any such state to membership in the United Nations
will be effected by a decision of the General Assembly upon the recommendation
of the Security Council.
A member of the United Nations against which preventive or enforcement
action has been taken by the Security Council may be suspended from the
exercise of the rights and privileges of membership by the General Assembly
upon the recommendation of the Security Council. The exercise of these rights
and privileges may be restored by the Security Council.
A Member of the United Nations which has persistently violated the
Principles contained in the present Charter may be expelled from the
Organization by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security
Council.
Organs
1. There are established as the principal organs of the United
Nations: a General Assembly, a Security Council, an Economic and Social
Council, a Trusteeship Council, an International Court of Justice, and a
Secretariat.
2. Such subsidiary organs as may be found necessary may be established
in accordance with the present Charter.
The United Nations shall place no restrictions on the eligibility of
men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality
in its principal and subsidiary organs.
Composition
1. The General Assembly shall consist of all the Members of the United
Nations.
2. Each member shall have not more than five representatives in the
General Assembly.
Functions and Powers
The General Assembly may discuss any questions or any matters within
the scope of the present Charter or relating to the powers and functions of any
organs provided for in the present Charter, and, except as provided in Article
12, may make recommendations to the Members of the United Nations or to the
Security Council or to both on any such questions or matters.
1. The General Assembly may consider the general principles of
cooperation in the maintenance of international peace and security, including
the principles governing disarmament and the regulation of armaments, and may
make recommendations with regard to such principles to the Members or to the
Security Council or to both.
2. The General Assembly may discuss any questions relating to the
maintenance of international peace and security brought before it by any Member
of the United Nations, or by the Security Council, or by a state which is not a
Member of the United Nations in accordance with Article 35, paragraph 2, and,
except as provided in Article 12, may make recommendations with regard to any
such questions to the state or states concerned or to the Security Council or
to both. Any such question on which action is necessary shall be referred to
the Security Council by the General Assembly either before or after discussion.
3. The General Assembly may call the attention of the Security Council
to situations which are likely to endanger international peace and security.
4. The powers of the General Assembly set forth in this Article shall
not limit the general scope of Article 10.
1. While the Security Council is exercising in respect of any dispute
or situation the functions assigned to it in the present Charter, the General
Assembly shall not make any recommendation with regard to that dispute or
situation unless the Security Council so requests.
2. The Secretary-General, with the consent of the Security Council,
shall notify the General Assembly at each session of any matters relative to
the maintenance of international peace and security which are being dealt with
by the Security Council and shall similarly notify the General Assembly, or the
Members of the United Nations if the General Assembly is not in session,
immediately the Security Council ceases to deal with such matters.
1. The General Assembly shall initiate studies and make
recommendations for the purpose of:
a. promoting international cooperation in the political field and
encouraging the progressive development of international law and its
codification;
b. promoting international cooperation in the economic, social,
cultural, educational, and health fields, and assisting in the realization of
human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race,
sex, language, or religion.
2. The further responsibilities, functions and powers of the General
Assembly with respect to matters mentioned in paragraph 1(b) above are set
forth in Chapters IX and X.
Subject to the provisions of Article 12, the General Assembly may
recommend measures for the peaceful adjustment of any situation, regardless of
origin, which it deems likely to impair the general welfare or friendly
relations among nations, including situations resulting from a violation of the
provisions of the present Charter setting forth the Purposes and Principles of
the United Nations.
1. The General Assembly shall receive and consider annual and special
reports from the Security Council; these reports shall include an account of
the measures that the Security Council has decided upon or taken to maintain
international peace and security.
2. The General Assembly shall receive and consider reports from the
other organs of the United Nations.
The General Assembly shall perform such functions with respect to the
international trusteeship system as are assigned to it under Chapters XII and
XIII, including the approval of the trusteeship agreements for areas not
designated as strategic.
1. The General Assembly shall consider and approve the budget of the
Organization.
2. The expenses of the Organization shall be borne by the Members as
apportioned by the General Assembly.
3. The General Assembly shall consider and approve any financial and
budgetary arrangements with specialized agencies referred to in Article 57 and
shall examine the administrative budgets of such specialized agencies with a
view to making recommendations to the agencies concerned.
Voting
1. Each member of the General Assembly shall have one vote.
2. Decisions of the General Assembly on important questions shall be
made by a two-thirds majority of the members present and voting. These
questions shall include: recommendations with respect to the maintenance of
international peace and security, the election of the non-permanent members of
the Security Council, the election of the members of the Economic and Social
Council, the election of members of the Trusteeship Council in accordance with
paragraph 1(c) of Article 86, the admission of new Members to the United Nations,
the suspension of the rights and privileges of membership, the expulsion of
Members, questions relating to the operation of the trusteeship system, and
budgetary questions.
3. Decisions on other questions, Composition including the
determination of additional categories of questions to be decided by a
two-thirds majority, shall be made by a majority of the members present and
voting.
A Member of the United Nations which is in arrears in the payment of
its financial contributions to the Organization shall have no vote in the
General Assembly if the amount of its arrears equals or exceeds the amount of
the contributions due from it for the preceding two full years. The General
Assembly may, nevertheless, permit such a Member to vote if it is satisfied
that the failure to pay is due to conditions beyond the control of the Member.
Procedure
The General Assembly shall meet in regular annual sessions and in such
special sessions as occasion may require. Special sessions shall be convoked by
the Secretary-General at the request of the Security Council or of a majority
of the Members of the United Nations.
The General Assembly shall adopt its own rules of procedure. It shall
elect its President for each session.
The General Assembly may establish such subsidiary organs as it deems
necessary for the performance of its functions.
1. The Security Council shall consist of fifteen Members of the United
Nations. The Republic of China, France, the Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the
United States of America shall be permanent members of the Security Council.
The General Assembly shall elect ten other Members of the United Nations to be
non-permanent members of the Security Council, due regard being specially paid,
in the first instance to the contribution of Members of the United Nations to
the maintenance of international peace and security and to the other purposes
of the Organization, and also to equitable geographical distribution.
The non-permanent members of the Security Council shall be elected for
a term of two years. In the first election of the non-permanent members after
the increase of the membership of the Security Council from eleven to fifteen,
two of the four additional members shall be chosen for a term of one year. A
retiring member shall not be eligible for immediate re-election.
Each member of the Security Council shall have one representative.
Functions and Powers
1. In order to ensure prompt and effective action by the United
Nations, its Members confer on the Security Council primary responsibility for
the maintenance of international peace and security, and agree that in carrying
out its duties under this responsibility the Security Council acts on their
behalf.
2. In discharging these duties the Security Council shall act in
accordance with the Purposes and Principles of the United Nations. The specific
powers granted to the Security Council for the discharge of these duties are
laid down in Chapters VI, VII, VIII, and XII.
3. The Security Council shall submit annual and, when necessary,
special reports to the General Assembly for its consideration.
The Members of the United Nations agree to accept and carry out the
decisions of the Security Council in accordance with the present Charter.
In order to promote the establishment and maintenance of international
peace and security with the least diversion for armaments of the world's human
and economic resources, the Security Council shall be responsible for
formulating, with the assistance of the Military Staff Committee referred to in
Article 47, plans to be submitted to the Members of the United Nations for the
establishment of a system for the regulation of armaments.
Voting
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.
Procedure
1. The Security Council shall be so organized as to be able to
function continuously. Each member of the Security Council shall for this
purpose be represented at all times at the seat of the Organization.
2. The Security Council shall hold periodic meetings at which each of
its members may, if it so desires, be represented by a member of the government
or by some other specially designated representative.
3. The Security Council may hold meetings at such places other than
the seat of the Organization as in its judgment will best facilitate its work.
The Security Council may establish such subsidiary organs as it deems
necessary for the performance of its functions.
The Security Council shall adopt its own rules of procedure, including
the method of selecting its President.
Any Member of the United Nations which is not a member of the Security
Council may participate, without vote, in the discussion of any question
brought before the Security Council whenever the latter considers that the
interests of that Member are specially affected.
Any Member of the United Nations which is not a member of the Security
Council or any state which is not a Member of the United Nations, if it is a
party to a dispute under consideration by the Security Council, shall be
invited to participate, without vote, in the discussion relating to the
dispute. The Security Council shall lay down such conditions as it deems just
for the participation of a state which is not a Member of the United Nations.
1. The parties to any dispute, the continuance of which is likely to
endanger the maintenance of international peace and security, shall, first of
all, seek a solution by negotiation, enquiry, mediation, conciliation,
arbitration, judicial settlement, resort to regional agencies or arrangements,
or other peaceful means of their own choice.
2. The Security Council shall, when it deems necessary, call upon the
parties to settle their dispute by such means.
The Security Council may investigate any dispute, or any situation
which might lead to international friction or give rise to a dispute, in order
to determine whether the continuance of the dispute or situation is likely to
endanger the maintenance of international peace and security.
1. Any Member of the United Nations may bring any dispute, or any
situation of the nature referred to in Article 34, to the attention of the
Security Council or of the General Assembly.
2. A state which is not a Member of the United Nations may bring to
the attention of the Security Council or of the General Assembly any dispute to
which it is a party if it accepts in advance, for the purposes of the dispute,
the obligations of pacific settlement provided in the present Charter.
3. The proceedings of the General Assembly in respect of matters
brought to its attention under this Article will be subject to the provisions
of Articles 11 and 12.
1. The Security Council may, at any stage of a dispute of the nature
referred to in Article 33 or of a situation of like nature, recommend
appropriate procedures or methods of adjustment.
2. The Security Council should take into consideration any procedures
for the settlement of the dispute which have already been adopted by the
parties.
3. In making recommendations under this Article the Security Council
should also take into consideration that legal disputes should as a general
rule be referred by the parties to the International Court of Justice in
accordance with the provisions of the Statute of the Court.
1. Should the parties to a dispute of the nature referred to in
Article 33 fail to settle it by the means indicated in that Article, they shall
refer it to the Security Council.
2. If the Security Council deems that the continuance of the dispute
is in fact likely to endanger the maintenance of international peace and
security, it shall decide whether to take action under Article 36 or to
recommend such terms of settlement as it may consider appropriate.
Without prejudice to the provisions of Articles 33 to 37, the Security
Council may, if all the parties to any dispute so request, make recommendations
to the parties with a view to a pacific settlement of the dispute.
The Security Council shall determine the existence of any threat to
the peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression and shall make
recommendations, or decide what measures shall be taken in accordance with
Articles 41 and 42, to maintain or restore international peace and security.
In order to prevent an aggravation of the situation, the Security
Council may, before making the recommendations or deciding upon the measures
provided for in Article 39, call upon the parties concerned to comply with such
provisional measures as it deems necessary or desirable. Such provisional
measures shall be without prejudice to the rights, claims, or position of the
parties concerned. The Security Council shall duly take account of failure to
comply with such provisional measures.
The Security Council may decide what measures not involving the use of
armed force are to be employed to give effect to its decisions, and it may call
upon the Members of the United Nations to apply such measures. These may
include complete or partial interruption of economic relations and of rail,
sea, air, postal, telegraphic, radio, and other means of communication, and the
severance of diplomatic relations.
Should the Security Council consider that measures provided for in Article
41 would be inadequate or have proved to be inadequate, it may take such action
by air, sea, or land forces as may be necessary to maintain or restore
international peace and security. Such action may include demonstrations,
blockade, and other operations by air, sea, or land forces of Members of the
United Nations.
1. All Members of the United Nations, in order to contribute to the
maintenance of international peace and security, undertake to make available to
the Security Council, on its call and in accordance with a special agreement or
agreements, armed forces, assistance, and facilities, including rights of
passage, necessary for the purpose of maintaining international peace and
security.
2. Such agreement or agreements shall govern the numbers and types of
forces. their degree of readiness and general location, and the nature of the
facilities and assistance to be provided.
3. The agreement or agreements shall be negotiated as soon as possible
on the initiative of the Security Council. They shall be concluded between the
Security Council and Members or between the Security Council and groups of
Members and shall be subject to ratification by the signatory states in
accordance with their respective constitutional processes.
When the Security Council has decided to use force it shall, before
calling upon a Member not represented on it to provide armed forces in
fulfillment of the obligations assumed under Article 43, invite that Member, if
the Member so desires, to participate in the decisions of the Security Council
concerning the employment of contingents of that Member's armed forces.
In order to enable the United Nations to take urgent military measures
Members shall hold immediately available national air-force contingents for
combined international enforcement action. The strength and degree of readiness
of these contingents and plans for their combined action shall be determined,
within the limits laid down in the special agreement or agreements referred to
in Article 43, by the Security Council with the assistance of the Military
Staff Committee.
Plans for the application of armed force shall be made by the Security
Council with the assistance of the Military Staff Committee.
1. There shall be established a Military Staff Committee to advise and
assist the Security Council on all questions relating to the Security Council's
military requirements for the maintenance of international peace and security,
the employment and command of forces placed at its disposal, the regulation of
armaments, and possible disarmament.
2. The Military Staff Committee shall consist of the Chiefs of Staff
of the permanent members of the Security Council or their representatives. Any
Member of the United Nations not permanently represented on the Committee shall
be invited by the Committee to be associated with it when the efficient
discharge of the Committee's responsibilities requires the participation of
that Member in its work.
3. The Military Staff Committee shall be responsible under the
Security Council for the strategic direction of any armed forces placed at the
disposal of the Security Council. Questions relating to the command of such
forces shall be worked out subsequently.
4. The Military Staff Committee, with the authorization of the
Security Council and after consultation with appropriate regional agencies, may
establish regional subcommittees.
1. The action required to carry out the decisions of the Security
Council for the maintenance of international peace and security shall be taken
by all the Members of the United Nations or by some of them, as the Security
Council may determine.
2. Such decisions shall be carried out by the Members of the United
Nations directly and through their action in the appropriate international
agencies of which they are members.
The Members of the United Nations shall join in affording mutual
assistance in carrying out the measures decided upon by the Security Council.
If preventive or enforcement measures against any state are taken by
the Security Council, any other state, whether a Member of the United Nations
or not, which finds itself confronted with special economic problems arising
from the carrying out of those measures shall have the right to consult the
Security Council with regard to a solution of those problems.
Nothing in the present Charter shall impair the inherent right of
individual or collective self-defense if an armed attack occurs against a Member
of the United Nations, until the Security Council has taken measures necessary
to maintain international peace and security. Measures taken by Members in the
exercise of this right of self-defense shall be immediately reported to the
Security Council and shall not in any way affect the authority and
responsibility of the Security Council under the present Charter to take at any
time such action as it deems necessary in order to maintain or restore
international peace and security.
1. Nothing in the present Charter precludes the existence of regional
arrangements or agencies for dealing with such matters relating to the
maintenance of international peace and security as are appropriate for regional
action, provided that such arrangements or agencies and their activities are
consistent with the Purposes and Principles of the United Nations.
2. The Members of the United Nations entering into such arrangements
or constituting such agencies shall make every effort to achieve pacific
settlement of local disputes through such regional arrangements or by such
regional agencies before referring them to the Security Council.
3. The Security Council shall encourage the development of pacific
settlement of local disputes through such regional arrangements or by such
regional agencies either on the initiative of the states concerned or by
reference from the Security Council.
4. This Article in no way impairs the application of Articles 34 and
35.
1. The Security Council shall, where appropriate, utilize such
regional arrangements or agencies for enforcement action under its authority.
But no enforcement action shall be taken under regional arrangements or by
regional agencies without the authorization of the Security Council, with the
exception of measures against any enemy state, as defined in paragraph 2 of
this Article, provided for pursuant to Article 107 or in regional arrangements
directed against renewal of aggressive policy on the part of any such state,
until such time as the Organization may, on request of the Governments
concerned, be charged with the responsibility for preventing further aggression
by such a state.
2. The term enemy state as used in paragraph 1 of this Article applies
to any state which during the Second World War has been an enemy of any
signatory of the present Charter.
The Security Council shall at all times be kept fully informed of
activities undertaken or in contemplation under regional arrangements or by
regional agencies for the maintenance of international peace and security.
International economic and social co-operation
With a view to the creation of conditions of stability and well-being
which are necessary for peaceful and friendly relations among nations based on
respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples,
the United Nations shall promote:
a. higher standards of living, full employment, and conditions of
economic and social progress and development;
b. solutions of international economic, social, health, and related
problems; and international cultural and educational co-operation; and
c. universal respect for, and observance of, human rights and
fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or
religion.
All Members pledge themselves to take joint and separate action in
cooperation with the Organization for the achievement of the purposes set forth
in Article 55.
1. The various specialized agencies, established by intergovernmental
agreement and having wide international responsibilities, as defined in their
basic instruments, in economic, social, cultural, educational, health, and
related fields, shall be brought into relationship with the United Nations in
accordance with the provisions of Article 63.
2. Such agencies thus brought into relationship with the United
Nations are hereinafter referred to as specialized agencies.
The Organization shall make recommendations for the coordination of
the policies and activities of the specialized agencies.
The Organization shall, where appropriate, initiate negotiations among
the states concerned for the creation of any new specialized agencies required
for the accomplishment of the purposes set forth in Article 55.
Responsibility for the discharge of the functions of the Organization
set forth in this Chapter shall be vested in the General Assembly and, under the
authority of the General Assembly, in the Economic and Social Council, which
shall have for this purpose the powers set forth in Chapter X.
The Economic and Social Council
Composition
1. The Economic and Social Council shall consist of fifty-four Members
of the United Nations elected by the General Assembly.
2. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 3, eighteen members of the
Economic and Social Council shall be elected each year for a term of three
years. A retiring member shall be eligible for immediate re-election.
3. At the first election after the increase in the membership of the
Economic and Social Council from twenty-seven to fifty-four members, in
addition to the members elected in place of the nine members whose term of
office expires at the end of that year, twenty-seven additional members shall
be elected. Of these twenty-seven additional members, the term of office of
nine members so elected shall expire at the end of one year, and of nine other
members at the end of two years, in accordance with arrangements made by the
General Assembly.
4. Each member of the Economic and Social Council shall have one
representative.
Functions and Powers
1. The Economic and Social Council may make or initiate studies and
reports with respect to international economic, social, cultural, educational,
health, and related matters and may make recommendations with respect to any
such matters to the General Assembly, to the Members of the United Nations, and
to the specialized agencies concerned.
2. It may make recommendations for the purpose of promoting respect
for, and observance of, human rights and fundamental freedoms for all.
3. It may prepare draft conventions for submission to the General
Assembly, with respect to matters falling within its competence.
4. It may call, in accordance with the rules prescribed by the United
Nations, international conferences on matters falling within its competence.
1. The Economic and Social Council may enter into agreements with any
of the agencies referred to in Article 57, defining the terms on which the
agency concerned shall be brought into relationship with the United Nations.
Such agreements shall be subject to approval by the General Assembly.
2. It may coordinate the activities of the specialized agencies
through consultation with and recommendations to such agencies and through
recommendations to the General Assembly and to the Members of the United
Nations.
1. The Economic and Social Council may take appropriate steps to
obtain regular reports from the specialized agencies. It may make arrangements
with the Members of the United Nations and with the specialized agencies to
obtain reports on the steps taken to give effect to its own recommendations and
to recommendations on matters falling within its competence made by the General
Assembly.
2. It may communicate its observations on these reports to the General
Assembly .
The Economic and Social Council may furnish information to the Security
Council and shall assist the Security Council upon its request.
1. The Economic and Social Council shall perform such functions as
fall within its competence in connection with the carrying out of the
recommendations of the General Assembly.
2. It may, with the approval of the General Assembly, perform services
at the request of Members of the United Nations and at the request of
specialized agencies.
3. It shall perform such other functions as are specified elsewhere in
the present Charter or as may be assigned to it by the General Assembly.
1. Each member of the Economic and Social Council shall have one vote.
2. Decisions of the Economic and Social Council shall be made by a
majority of the members present and voting.
Procedure
The Economic and Social Council shall set up commissions in economic
and social fields and for the promotion of human rights, and such other
commissions as may be required for the performance of its functions.
The Economic and Social Council shall invite any Member of the United
Nations to participate, without vote, in its deliberations on any matter of
particular concern to that Member.
The Economic and Social Council may make arrangements for representatives
of the specialized agencies to participate, without vote, in its deliberations
and in those of the commissions established by it, and for its representatives
to participate in the deliberations of the specialized agencies.
The Economic and Social Council may make suitable arrangements for
consultation with non-governmental organizations which are concerned with
matters within its competence. Such arrangements may be made with international
organizations and, where appropriate, with national organizations after
consultation with the Member of the United Nations concerned.
1. The Economic and Social Council shall adopt its own rules of
procedure, including the method of selecting its President.
2. The Economic and Social Council shall meet as required in
accordance with its rules, which shall include provision for the convening of
meetings on the request of a majority of its members.
Article 73
Members of the United Nations which have or assume responsibilities
for the administration of territories whose peoples have not yet attained a
full measure of self-government recognize the principle that the interests of
the inhabitants of these territories are paramount, and accept as a sacred
trust the obligation to promote to the utmost, within the system of
international peace and security established by the present Charter, the
well-being of the inhabitants of these territories, and, to this end:
a. to ensure, with due respect for the culture of the peoples
concerned, their political, economic, social, and educational advancement,
their just treatment, and their protection against abuses;
b. to develop self-government, to take due account of the political
aspirations of the peoples, and to assist them in the progressive development
of their free political institutions, according to the particular circumstances
of each territory and its peoples and their varying stages of advancement;
c. to further international peace and security;
d. to promote constructive measures of development, to encourage
research, and to cooperate with one another and, when and where appropriate,
with specialized international bodies with a view to the practical achievement
of the social, economic, and scientific purposes set forth in this Article; and
e. to transmit regularly to the Secretary-General for information
purposes, subject to such limitation as security and constitutional
considerations may require, statistical and other information of a technical
nature relating to economic, social, and educational conditions in the
territories for which they are respectively responsible other than those
territories to which Chapter XII and XIII apply.
Members of the United Nations also agree that their policy in respect
of the territories to which this Chapter applies, no less than in respect of
their metropolitan areas, must be based on the general principle of
good-neighborliness, due account being taken of the interests and well-being of
the rest of the world, in social, economic, and commercial matters.