Transcript The United Nations (UN)

Division or unification?
Devolution or Suprantionalism? FR
Devolution:
• breakup of a state
• the granting of powers from the central
government of a state to government at a
subnational level
• Very different from federalism (provinces
within a country can make their own laws)
• Examples
Yugoslavia (Balkans), former USSR,
Austria Hungary after WWI, India
Supranationalism:
• Collection of states working together
• political power given to a higher authority
above the state (country) government
Examples: EU, NAFTA, UN, NATO, WTO
supranational organizations: collections of
individual states with a common goal that may
be economic and/or political in nature; such
organizations diminish, to some extent,
individual state sovereignty in favor of the group
interests of the membership.
The more states participate in such
multilateral associations, the less likely
they are to act alone in pursuit of a selfinterest that might put them at odds with
neighbors.
States
cooperate with
each other for
the following
reasons:
military
political
economic
Examples of Military
Cooperation:
North Atlantic
Treaty Organization
(NATO)- a crossAtlantic military
alliance/organizatio
n An attack against
one is an attack
against all.
The growth of NATO was a major concern to Russia,
where this has become a leading political issue.
Russia’s sense of encirclement on the Eurasian
landmass has always been a factor in Russian
nationalism.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation or SCO
is an intergovernmental mutual-security
organisation which was founded in 2001 in
Shanghai by the leaders of China, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization original
purposes of the SCO was to serve as a
counterbalance to NATO and the United States
and in particular to avoid conflicts that would
allow the United States to intervene in areas
bordering both Russia and China
Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union,
formed in 2004. More a version of the United Nations
Security Council than a true military alliance.
South American Defense Council (SADC) of the Union
of South American Nations, developed form 2008. Full
extent of provisions yet to be agreed.
South Korea and the United States entered into a
military alliance following the Korean War.
Examples of political
cooperation:
African Union (AU): a cultural
alliance to promote shared
goals and resolve disputes
• Arab League: a multinational alliance of Muslim
states in North Africa and Southwest Asia.
The United Nations (UN) is an international organization
(supranational) whose stated aims are facilitating
cooperation in international law, international security,
economic development, social progress, human rights,
and the achieving of world peace established at the end
of World War II.
Over the past half century, the number of
sovereign states in the world has
increased by more than a hundred
• It now includes 193 member states (not
including the Taiwan, Kosovo, or the
Vatican)
The United Nations is not a world government;
member states participate voluntarily. Although
member states do not formally yield any
sovereignty to the UN they may agree to abide
by specific UN decisions.
At the very least, the UN provides a place
for the nations of the world to have
dialogue.
In a world where free
trade and marketbased development
continues to grow, the
UN has successfully
improved:
• problems of infant
mortality,
• nutrition,
• education
• in many parts of the
world.
The United Nations Security Council
(UNSC) is one of the principal organs of
the United Nations and is charged with
the maintenance of international peace
and security. Its powers, outlined in the
United Nations Charter, include the
establishment of peacekeeping
operations, the establishment of
international sanctions, and the
authorization of military action.
International Economic
Sanctions: penalties
imposed by one or several
states on another state to
compel that state to amend
its behavior.
Economic sanctions include,
but are not limited to, tariffs,
trade barriers, and import
duties.
The most famous example of
an economic sanction is the
fifty-year-old United States
embargo against Cuba.
Economic sanctions are
not always imposed
because of economic
circumstances.
For example, the
United States has
imposed economic
sanctions against Iran
for years, on the
basis that the Iranian
government sponsors
groups who work
against US interests.
The United Nations imposed stringent economic
sanctions upon Iraq after the first Gulf War, and
these were maintained partly as an attempt to
make the Iraqi government co-operate with the
UN weapons inspectors' monitoring of Iraq's
weapons and weapons programs. These
sanctions were unusually stringent in that very
little in the way of trade goods were allowed into
or out of Iraq during the sanction period.
There is a United Nations sanctions regime
imposed by UN Security Council against all AlQaida- and Taliban-associated individuals.
The cornerstone of the regime is a consolidated
list of persons maintained by the Security
Council. All nations are obliged to freeze bank
accounts and other financial instruments
controlled by, or used for the benefit of, anyone
on the list.
There are 15 members of the Security
Council, consisting of 5 veto-wielding
permanent members (China, France,
Russia, the United Kingdom, and the
United States)
2009 map
and 10 elected non-permanent members with
two-year terms.
One proposed measure is to increase the number of permanent members by five, which,
in most proposals, would include Brazil, Germany, India, Japan (known as the G4
nations), one seat from Africa (most likely between Egypt, Nigeria or South Africa) and/or
one seat from the Arab League. On 21 September 2004, the G4 nations issued a joint
statement mutually backing each other's claim to permanent status, together with two
African countries. Currently the proposal has to be accepted by two-thirds of the General
Assembly (128 votes).
The UN does not have its own army, so the
Security Council borrows forces for each
mission from the armies of member
countries.
Peacekeeping: nonaggressive use of
military force to help nations in conflict reach
a settlement.
The UN’s peacekeeping forces play a neutral
role, working to calm regional conflicts in several
ways. They can:
• go into an area of conflict as observers,
making sure agreements reached between
opposing sides are being followed.
• provide a buffer between warring parties by
physically interposing themselves in the
middle.
• negotiate with military officers on both sides,
providing a channel of communication.
• monitor cease-fires, supervise elections, and
provide humanitarian aid.
Despite problems, the United Nations’
peacekeeping role has continued to grow, and
its successes have far outweighed its failures.
In places such as East Timor and Kosovo, for
example, UN peacekeepers have helped bring
stability after upheavals in the late 1990s.
More than 40,000 peacekeeping troops
from some 80 UN member states
Are serving in: Bosnia, the Congo, Croatia, Cyprus, East Timor, Ethiopia and
Eritrea, Georgia, Iraq/Kuwait, Kashmir, Kosovo, Lebanon, various parts of the
Middle East, Sierra Leone, and Western Sahara.
Why do some Americans hate and fear the UN?
The UN constrains the United States by
creating the one coalition that can rival U.S.
power—that of all other nations.
Gun control
Death penalty
System of measurement
The United States has a streak of isolationism in
its foreign policy that runs counter to the idea of
the UN.
Multilateralism: decision making and
participation by more than two countries,
parties, etc.
Unilateralism: one sided decision making
and participation. Unilateralism may be
preferred in those instances when it's
assumed to be the most efficient.
Multilateralism may involve multiple
nations acting together as in the UN or
may involve regional or military alliances,
pacts, or groupings such as NATO.
Proponents of multilateralism
argue that it would provide
a country with greater
resources, both militarily
and economically, and
would help in defraying the
cost of military action.
However, with divided
responsibility inevitably
comes divided authority,
and thus slower military
reaction times and the
demand that troops follow
commanders from other
nations.
“The Bush Doctrine" came to describe the controversial
policy of preventive war, which held that the United
States should depose foreign regimes that
represented a potential or perceived threat to the
security of the United States, even if that threat was
not immediate;
a policy of spreading democracy around the world,
especially in the Middle East, as a strategy for
combating terrorism; and a willingness to unilaterally
pursue U.S. military interests.
Debates about unilateralism
recently came to the forefront with
the Iraq War. While over 30
countries have supported the U.S.
policy, some previous American
allies, such as France, Germany
and Turkey, are not participating.
Many opponents of the war have
argued that the United States is
"going in alone" in Iraq without the
support of multilateral
institutions—in this case NATO
and the United Nations.
Advocates of U.S. unilateralism argue
that other countries should not have
"veto power" over matters of U.S.
national security.
Proponents of U.S. unilateralism generally
believe that a multilateral institution, such as the
United Nations, is morally suspect because,
they argue, it treats non-democratic, and even
despotic, regimes as being as legitimate as
democratic countries.
Examples of Economic Cooperation:
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), is
a cartel of twelve developing countries made up of Algeria,
Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi
Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela
.
Its principal goals are to
• eliminate the harmful and
unnecessary fluctuations in the
price of oil
• securing a steady income to
the producing countries
• Produce a regular supply of
petroleum to consuming
nations,
• and produce a profit to those
investing in the petroleum
industry.
OPEC's influence on the market has been widely
criticized, since it became effective in
determining production and prices. Arab
members of OPEC alarmed the developed world
when they used the “oil weapon” during the Yom
Kippur War by implementing oil embargoes and
initiating the 1973 oil crisis.
Escalation in oil prices caused severe economic
problems during the 70s
OPEC's ability to control
the price of oil has
diminished somewhat
since then, due to the
subsequent discovery
and development of
large oil reserves in
Alaska, the North Sea,
Canada, the Gulf of
Mexico, and the
opening up of Russia.
OPEC nations still account for
two-thirds of the world's oil
reserves, and, as of April
2009, 33.3% of the world's
oil production, affording
them considerable control
over the global market.
As early as 2003, concerns
that OPEC members had
little excess pumping
capacity sparked
speculation that their
influence on crude oil
prices would begin to slip.
Examples of economic cooperation:
Often called trading blocs: a type of
intergovernmental agreement, often part of a
regional intergovernmental organization, where
regional barriers to trade (tariffs and non-tariff
barriers) are reduced or eliminated among the
participating states.
NAFTA: The North American Free Trade Agreement
(Jan.1994) a free-trade area between the U.S., Canada
and Mexico; provides for the tariff-free movement of
goods and products, financial services,
telecommunications, investment, and patent protection.
The top three countries receiving California
exports in order are: Mexico, Japan, Canada
The top 3 countries, in order, that sent tourists
to California: Mexico, Japan, Canada
Other economic trading blocs (not on test):
• The majority of the Caribbean island-states, with Belize
in Middle American and Guyana in South American, are
linked in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM)
• Central American Common Market, with seven
members extending from Guatemala to Panama.
• The Andean Group: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador,
Peru, and Bolivia
• Southern Cone Community Market
• MERCOSUR: Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and
Paraguay.
• ECOWAS: the Economic Community of West African
States.
• APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Council)
• CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States): former
republics of the USSR
The largest economic organization is the World
Trade Organization (WTO) is an organization
that intends to supervise and liberalize
international trade. The organization deals with
regulation of trade between participating
countries; it provides a framework for
negotiating and formalizing trade agreements,
and a dispute resolution process aimed at
enforcing participants' adherence to WTO
agreements.
The WTO has 153 members, representing
more than 97% of total world trade and 30
observers, most seeking membership
World Trade Organization (WTO): sets up the ground
rules of international trade (tries to eliminate trade
barriers) suprantional in scope
The best example
of
supranationalism
is:
the European
Union: an
economic and
political union of
27 member states.
Western European countries have increased
economic integration by:
• lowering and eliminating trade barriers
• allowing labor to move freely
• coordinating a common foreign policy
• creating a centralized fiscal policy (common
currency)
The population of 500 million inhabitants,
generated an estimated 28% share (US$
16.5 trillion) of the nominal gross world
product in 2009. As a trading bloc the EU
accounts for 20% of global imports and
exports.
European countries
have different
cultures but similar
Ideology:
• democracy
• rule of law
• market economy
Switzerland is not a member
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone:
17 of the 27 Member States of the European
Union (EU). The currency is also used in a
further five European countries and is
consequently used daily by some 327 million
Europeans. Over 175 million people worldwide
use currencies which are pegged to the euro,
including more than 150 million people in Africa.
The euro is the second largest reserve currency
as well as the second most traded currency in the
world after the U.S. dollar. As of June 2010, with
more than €800 billion in circulation, the euro has
the highest combined value of banknotes and
coins in circulation in the world, having surpassed
the U.S. dollar. Based on IMF estimates of 2008
GDP and purchasing power parity among the
various currencies, the eurozone is the second
largest economy in the world.
Euro-zone: The EU counties using the euro
U.K., Sweden, and Denmark do not use the euro.
They worried that a shared European currency
would threaten their national identity and
governmental authority.
Expansion of EU:
• Under the rules of the EU, the richer countries
must subsidize the poorer ones
• Economically weak countries will become a
burden
Turkey and others want
in the EU but their
poor human rights
record (Kurds) or
lower economic level
keeps them out.
An unspoken sense
among many that
Turkey is not
“European” enough to
warrant membership.
Changes resulting from
supranationalism in Europe FR
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political stability
less conflict/increase in military power
economically stronger
free trade/lowering and eliminating trade barriers
labor can move freely
euro/Common currency
rich countries subsidize the poor ones
centralized fiscal policy
• diminishes state sovereignty or loss of local
autonomy
Changes resulting from devolution in Europe
• new states
• political instability
• conflict/war
• migration (from fighting)
• economic instability
Areas the EU and
the USA disagree
• the U.S. farm bill
• steel tariffs
• the international
criminal court
• global warming
• Convention against
torture – jail
inspection
nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) any nonprofit, voluntary citizens' group which is organized
on a local, national or international level. ex:
Doctors without borders
Amnesty International
World Wildlife Fed.
Supernational organizations have become a reality
because the state system is an inadequate instrument
for dealing with world issues and problems.
Interstate cooperation is so widespread around the world
that a new era clearly arrived.