The United Nations : a very short introduction

Bibliographic Information

The United Nations : a very short introduction

Jussi M. Hanhimäki

(Very short introductions, 199)

Oxford University Press, c2008

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Note

Includes bibliographical references (p. 156-161) and index

Description and Table of Contents

Description

The United Nations has been called everything from "the best hope of mankind" to "irrelevant" and "obsolete." With this much-needed introduction to the UN, Jussi Hanhimaki engages the current debate over the organizations effectiveness as he provides a clear understanding of how it was originally conceived, how it has come to its present form, and how it must confront new challenges in a rapidly changing world. After a brief history of the United Nations and its predecessor, the League of Nations, the author examines the UN's successes and failures as a guardian of international peace and security, as a promoter of human rights, as a protector of international law, and as an engineer of socio-economic development. Hanhimaki stresses that the UN's greatest problem has been the impossibly wide gap between its ambitions and capabilities. In the area of international security, for instance, the UN has to settle conflicts-be they between or within states-without offending the national sovereignty of its member states, and without being sidelined by strong countries, as happened in the 2003 intervention of Iraq. Hanhimaki also provides a clear accounting of the UN and its various arms and organizations (such as UNESCO and UNICEF), and he offers a critical overview of how effective it has been in the recent crises in Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia, for example-and how likely it is to meet its overall goals in the future. The United Nations, Hanhimaki concludes, is an indispensable organization that has made the world a better place. But it is also a deeply flawed institution, in need of constant reform. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Table of Contents

List of illustrations ix Acknowledgments x Introduction 1 Chapter 1: The best hope of mankind?: A brief history of the UN 8 Chapter 2: An impossible hybrid: The structure of the United Nations 26 Chapter 3: Facing wars, confronting threats: The U.N. Security Council in action 50 Chapter 4: Peacekeeping to peacebuilding 71 Chapter 5: Economic development to human development 91 Chapter 6: Rights and responsibilities: human rights to human security 111 Chapter 7: Reforms and challenges: the future of the United Nations 135 Chronology 149 Glossary: acronyms of major UN organs and agencies used in the text 154 References 156 Further reading 158 Index 162

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Details

  • NCID
    BA87521990
  • ISBN
    • 9780195304374
  • LCCN
    2008018818
  • Country Code
    uk
  • Title Language Code
    eng
  • Text Language Code
    eng
  • Place of Publication
    Oxford ; New York
  • Pages/Volumes
    171 p.
  • Size
    18 cm
  • Classification
  • Subject Headings
  • Parent Bibliography ID
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