Chapter II of the United Nations Charter
Encyclopedia
Chapter II of the United Nations Charter
deals with membership of the United Nations
organization. Membership is open to the original signatories and "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." A country can only be admitted to the UN after the UN General Assembly votes to do so upon the recommendation of the UN Security Council. The required assent of the permanent five (P5) members of the Security Council (People's Republic of China
, France
, Russian Federation, the United Kingdom
, and the United States of America) no doubt accounts for why admission to membership in the UN is regarded as an important indicator of sovereignty and legitimate statehood (especially for microstate
s). On the other hand, some de facto
-acknowledged independently-governed countries such as Taiwan
have not been admitted to the UN due a veto by a P5 member. During the Cold War
, the USA and the USSR did not allow the admission of countries from rival blocs for a while, but then began letting those countries join, which led to a period of great expansion of UN membership, especially as the number of sovereign countries increased due to colonies gaining independence.
Chapter II also provides for the suspension and expulsion of member countries from the UN by the UN General Assembly upon the recommendation of the UN Security Council, and for the restoration of rights to suspended members by the Security Council. Partly because of the procedure set out in this chapter, Taiwan has questioned the legality of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 which declared that the People's Republic of China
was the legitimate holder of the Chinese seat and that the Taiwanese delegation was to be expelled forthwith. In 2005, Israel
called for the expulsion of Iran
, apparently interpreting the latter's calls for the destruction of Israel as having "persistently violated the Principles contained in the present Charter" and thus meeting the Article 6 criteria for expulsion.
United Nations Charter
The Charter of the United Nations is the foundational treaty of the international organization called the United Nations. It was signed at the San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center in San Francisco, United States, on 26 June 1945, by 50 of the 51 original member countries...
deals with membership of the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
organization. Membership is open to the original signatories and "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." A country can only be admitted to the UN after the UN General Assembly votes to do so upon the recommendation of the UN Security Council. The required assent of the permanent five (P5) members of the Security Council (People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Russian Federation, the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and the United States of America) no doubt accounts for why admission to membership in the UN is regarded as an important indicator of sovereignty and legitimate statehood (especially for microstate
Microstate
A microstate or ministate is a sovereign state having a very small population or very small land area, but usually both. Some examples include Liechtenstein, Malta, Monaco, Nauru, Singapore, and Vatican City....
s). On the other hand, some de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
-acknowledged independently-governed countries such as Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
have not been admitted to the UN due a veto by a P5 member. During the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, the USA and the USSR did not allow the admission of countries from rival blocs for a while, but then began letting those countries join, which led to a period of great expansion of UN membership, especially as the number of sovereign countries increased due to colonies gaining independence.
Chapter II also provides for the suspension and expulsion of member countries from the UN by the UN General Assembly upon the recommendation of the UN Security Council, and for the restoration of rights to suspended members by the Security Council. Partly because of the procedure set out in this chapter, Taiwan has questioned the legality of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 which declared that the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
was the legitimate holder of the Chinese seat and that the Taiwanese delegation was to be expelled forthwith. In 2005, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
called for the expulsion of Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, apparently interpreting the latter's calls for the destruction of Israel as having "persistently violated the Principles contained in the present Charter" and thus meeting the Article 6 criteria for expulsion.