Hello Future Historian! Welcome to International Organisations!

Welcome to Chapter B5! This is a fascinating part of history because we look at the two biggest attempts humanity has ever made to create a global "referee" to stop conflicts: the League of Nations and the United Nations (UN).

Understanding these organisations is crucial. It shows us how international diplomacy has evolved from the chaos of World War I right up to the modern challenges of terrorism and global health crises. We will track their aims, their successes, their devastating failures, and how they adapted over almost a century.

Don't worry if international law sounds complicated! We will break down the structures of these groups using simple analogies to make them easy to remember. Let's dive in!

Part 1: The League of Nations (1919–1946) – The First Attempt

1.1 Creation and Core Aims

The League of Nations was born out of the devastation of World War I. It was the brainchild of US President Woodrow Wilson, who wanted a place where countries could talk things out instead of fighting.

  • Creation: Established by the Treaty of Versailles (1919).
  • Key Aim: Collective Security. This means if one country attacked another, all the other members would stand together to stop the aggressor. (Think of it like a neighbourhood watch – if one house is robbed, the whole community responds.)
  • Other Aims: Disarmament, improving working conditions (through the ILO), and tackling global disease.

1.2 Structural Weaknesses

The League had a clear structure, but major design flaws made it weak from the start:

  • The Missing Member: The USA never joined! Despite Wilson creating it, the US Congress refused to ratify the Treaty of Versailles. This meant the League lacked the world's most powerful, wealthy nation.
  • No Muscle: The League had no standing army. Its only tools were:
    • Moral Persuasion: Telling off the aggressor.
    • Sanctions: Economic punishment (refusing to trade). These only worked if all major powers cooperated.
  • Decision Making: All major decisions had to be unanimous (everyone had to agree). This made taking decisive action very slow or impossible.

1.3 Successes in the 1920s (The Good Times)

In the relatively peaceful 1920s, the League had some important wins, mostly involving minor disputes or humanitarian issues:

  • Border Disputes: Successfully mediated conflicts over the Aaland Islands (Sweden vs. Finland, 1921) and stopped Greece from invading Bulgaria (1925).
  • Social Work: Its agencies successfully tackled diseases like leprosy, returned prisoners of war, and fought the international drug trade.

1.4 The Failures of the 1930s (The Downfall)

When powerful countries decided to ignore the League, its weaknesses were exposed. This proved that collective security only works if everyone is truly committed.

Case Study 1: The Manchurian Crisis (1931–1933)

  1. Japan (a powerful League member) invaded Manchuria (China).
  2. The League condemned the action but was too far away and unwilling to impose meaningful sanctions.
  3. Japan simply quit the League and continued the invasion.

Case Study 2: The Abyssinian Crisis (1935–1936)

  1. Italy (led by Mussolini, a powerful member) invaded Abyssinia (Ethiopia).
  2. The League imposed weak sanctions, but crucially, it hesitated to stop oil sales (for fear of economic damage to its own members, Britain and France).
  3. The lack of serious action proved that League members prioritised their national interests over collective security. Italy conquered Abyssinia and then left the League.

Key Takeaway: By 1936, the League was irrelevant. It had failed its primary goal—preventing aggression by major powers—and the world moved inevitably towards WWII.

Part 2: The United Nations (UN) – A Stronger Successor (1945 onwards)

2.1 Learning from the Past: Creation and Aims

As World War II drew to a close, the major Allied powers (USA, UK, USSR) agreed they must try again, but this time, they needed an organisation with real teeth.

  • Date Founded: October 1945.
  • Founding Principle: The failure of the League was that key members (like the USA) were missing, and the rules were too restrictive. The UN corrected this by ensuring the powerful nations were permanent members and giving them the means to enforce peace.
  • Core Aims: Peace, security, economic development, human rights, and humanitarian aid. (Much broader than the League’s original scope.)

2.2 Structure of the UN: Where the Power Lies

The UN is a much more complex machine, featuring several key bodies:

The General Assembly (GA)

This is the "Town Hall". Every member nation (nearly 200 today) gets one vote and can discuss any issue. It holds moral weight but cannot enforce resolutions like the Security Council.

The Security Council (SC) – The Muscle

This is the most powerful part of the UN. It is responsible for global peace and security and has the power to authorise sanctions, ceasefires, and military intervention (Chapter VII resolutions).

  • Permanent Five (P5): USA, UK, France, China, and Russia (who inherited the USSR's seat). These are the five victors of WWII.
  • Crucial Power: The Veto. Any one of the P5 can reject a resolution, even if the other 14 members agree.

Did You Know? This veto power was included to ensure that the major powers would never leave the UN, unlike the major powers abandoning the League. It means the UN can only act if the P5 agree, or at least don't actively disagree.

Specialised Agencies (The Humanitarian Heart)

These agencies carry out essential global work and often achieve success even when the Security Council is deadlocked:

  • WHO (World Health Organisation)
  • UNICEF (UN Children's Fund)
  • UNESCO (Education, Science, Culture)

Part 3: The UN During the Cold War (1945–c1991)

The Cold War (the period of intense rivalry between the US and the Soviet Union) immediately tested the UN’s effectiveness. The biggest challenge was the structural division within the Security Council.

3.1 The Veto Deadlock

The US and the USSR represented two opposing ideologies (Capitalism vs. Communism). Because both were P5 members, they constantly used the veto to block any action proposed by the other side.

Analogy: Imagine two football coaches who refuse to agree on the game rules. Every time a new rule is suggested, one coach yells "Veto!" Nothing gets done, and the main job (maintaining peace) stalls.

3.2 Cold War Successes: Avoiding Nuclear Conflict and Peacekeeping

Even though the SC was often stuck, the UN played a vital role in preventing the Cold War from turning hot (nuclear).

  • Intervention (Korea, 1950): The UN did authorise military action to defend South Korea, but only because the Soviet delegate was boycotting the session and could not use their veto. This was a rare exception.
  • Peacekeeping: The UN developed Peacekeeping Forces (known by their blue helmets). These were lightly armed troops deployed after a conflict had stopped to monitor ceasefires and provide stability (e.g., Suez Crisis 1956). This was a crucial new function that the League never developed.
  • De-colonisation: The UN encouraged the peaceful end of European empires in Africa and Asia, increasing its membership and legitimacy.

Quick Review: Cold War Era – The UN’s primary security role was hampered by the Veto. Its main successes lay in humanitarian aid and developing the concept of peacekeeping to manage, rather than solve, conflicts.

Part 4: The Changing Role of the UN (c1991–c2011)

The collapse of the Soviet Union around 1991 dramatically changed the international landscape. For a time, it seemed the UN could finally fulfil its potential.

4.1 A Moment of Hope: The Post-Cold War Consensus

With the rivalry between the US and Russia temporarily reduced, the Security Council began to work much more effectively.

  • The 1991 Gulf War: When Iraq invaded Kuwait, the UN quickly passed Resolution 678, authorising member states to use "all necessary means" (military force) to expel Iraq. This demonstrated a level of unified international action that was impossible during the Cold War.

4.2 New Challenges: Civil War and Humanitarian Crises

The 1990s brought new kinds of threats—not large wars between states, but horrific civil wars, genocide, and "failed states." The UN struggled greatly with these new challenges because they involved intervening in the internal affairs of sovereign nations.

Critical Failures of Intervention

  • The Rwandan Genocide (1994): While the UN had a small peacekeeping force present, the P5 refused to authorise sufficient troops or resources necessary to stop the systematic mass killing of the Tutsi population. This failure highlighted the UN’s inability to act decisively when national interests (especially those of the P5) were not directly threatened.
  • The Balkans (Srebrenica 1995): The UN was unable to prevent the massacre of thousands of men and boys in a designated 'safe zone,' again demonstrating a profound weakness in enforcement when faced with determined local aggression.

4.3 The UN in the Early 21st Century (Post-9/11)

The terrorist attacks of 2001 (9/11) fundamentally shifted the UN's focus, introducing a global war on terror.

  • Terrorism and Sovereignty: The UN passed resolutions (like Resolution 1373) requiring all members to suppress the financing of terrorism.
  • Divisions Re-emerge (Iraq 2003): The consensus seen in 1991 broke down when the US proposed invading Iraq in 2003. France, Germany, and Russia strongly opposed the invasion, and the US-led coalition bypassed the Security Council, showing the UN’s limits when a superpower is determined to act unilaterally (alone).

Key Takeaway: From 1991 to 2011, the UN proved it could act decisively when the P5 agreed (e.g., Gulf War). However, it proved tragically ineffective in stopping internal humanitarian disasters (e.g., Rwanda) and often struggled when the P5 disagreed (e.g., Iraq War).

Part 5: Comparing the League and the UN

The question you must be able to answer is: Why did the UN succeed where the League of Nations failed?

5.1 League vs. UN: A Comparison of Effectiveness

Feature League of Nations (1919) United Nations (1945)
Membership Incomplete (USA never joined; major powers left). Nearly Universal (Includes all great powers from the start).
Enforcement Power No military force. Relied only on sanctions and 'moral persuasion.' Has the power to authorise collective military action (Chapter VII).
Decision Making Unanimous vote required (too slow and easily blocked). SC is dominated by P5 Veto, but the GA allows majority discussion.
Focus/Role Narrowly focused on preventing traditional state warfare. Broad scope: security, economic aid, human rights, disease, environment.

5.2 Conclusion: The Legacy of Change

The UN survived and adapted because it addressed the critical failings of the League:

  1. Inclusion: The UN learned that you must include all major powers, even if they sometimes clash (the Veto is the price of keeping them inside the tent).
  2. Adaptability: The UN created flexible tools like Peacekeeping, which allowed it to manage conflicts even when the Veto prevented full military enforcement.
  3. Humanitarian Success: Its specialised agencies provide essential, non-political aid, which builds confidence and legitimacy globally, regardless of security failures.

Even though the UN often faces criticism—as seen during the Cold War deadlocks, and the failures in Rwanda and the Balkans—it remains a global platform for diplomacy, demonstrating a far greater resilience and scope than its predecessor.

Study Tip: Mnemonic for P5

Remember the P5 (the permanent members of the Security Council) with this easy trick:

Five Really Unusual Countries Unite

(France, Russia, UK, China, USA)

Good luck with your revision!