How the United Nations Beat Hitler and Prepared the Peace

The United Nations was born in 1942, defeated the Axis Powers led by Germany, Italy and Japan and created today's UN system. This reality has been lost in modern scholarship. We are taught that the Allied countries, mainly America and Britain, with the Soviet Union won the war and that the United Nations was created in 1945. In this way, the achievement of victory can be set in opposition to the United Nations and to multilateralism in general. But it should not be possible to separate victory in the war from the modern United Nations and its priorities, for these were the priorities set by the United Nations at war. America, Britain and the Soviet Union led a large coalition of states organised as the United Nations and this term was used routinely in military orders, in the instruments of surrender signed by the enemy and in political and social life. Bretton Woods and San Francisco were United Nations conferences, and interim United Nations organisations preceded the Charter. Understanding the wartime United Nations reframes our understanding of the second half of the last century and of our own. From UNESCO to the World Bank the primary purpose of the international system is conflict prevention and its wartime architects bequeathed us this system as a realist necessity vital in times of trial, not as a liberal accessory to be discarded when the going gets rough.     

United Nations Security Council Reform Revisited: A Proposal

The United Nations [UN] came into being following the Second World War. Resembling earlier efforts of co-operation by the most powerful states of the international system, it was an attempt to effect global governance through the maintenance of international peace and security amongst states. However, led by its main executive organ, the Security Council, the UN has been unable to prevent and effectively deal with armed conflicts and mass atrocities in a number of situations. Over the years, the inability of the UN Security Council to take collective action has resulted in its ineffectiveness in dealing with war and humanitarian crises. This situation has led to calls for Security Council reform and has generated several initiatives to that end. This analysis discusses major shortcomings of the Security Council, analyses prominent reform initiatives, and introduces a proposal, the “Two-Layered Regional Model,” for Security Council reform.     

论预防性自卫与反国际恐怖主义

《联合国宪章》生效以前传统的国际习惯法理论承认在符合严格限制条件的前提下的预防性自卫。但是,《联合国宪章》生效后,对于《联合国宪章》第五十一条是否绝对地禁止预防性自卫,国际社会尚未达成一致。国际恐怖主义组织发动的恐怖袭击,如果达到可以被视为针对受害国的"武力攻击"的程度,则受害国可以行使自卫的权利。但是,如果受害国决定对国际恐怖组织的支持国实施预防性的武力自卫,则必须纳入到安理会的运作机制之下。     

Comments on UN Reform

OnOctober9-132004,UnitedNationsSecretary-GeneralKofiAnnanpaidanofficialvisittoChina.Duringhisstay,hehaddiscussionswithChineseleadersonUNreformandchangesintheinterna-tionalsituationandetc.Inrecent59thUNGeneralAssemblySession,UNreformwasalsooneofthehottopics.ThenecessityofUNreform.UNisnowfacingarigorousrealityofinternationalpolitics.Althoughpeaceanddevelopmentstillremainthemainthemesofourtime,theworldisfarfromtranquility.Thegeneralinternationalsituationhaskeptitsba-sicfeaturesasoverall…     

""Blood on the UN's Hands'? Assigning Duties and Apportioning Blame to an Intergovernmental Organisation

The United Nations is frequently the object of blame for "failing' ' to act in response to what are deemed to be ethical imperatives. Implicit in such condemnations is an understanding of the United Nations as a body that has moral duties, and possesses the various capacities for deliberating and acting that would make this a reasonable conception. Yet this portrayal of the United Nations as a moral agent is one that should only be invoked with great care, and some qualification. By constructing a model of "institutional moral agency'', and examining whether the United Nations meets its criteria, this article aims to offer a preliminary account of the internal features, and enabling conditions that would allow the United Nations to bear the related burdens of duty and blame in international politics. It also suggests who—or what— might bear these burdens when the United Nations is incapable of acting.     

Global Governance Reform

President Barack Obama has trumpeted a ＂new era of engagement＂ for the United States. The central components of his strategy include a world order characterized by peaceful accommodation between established and rising powers; the collective management of transnational problems; and the overhaul of international institutions to reflect these shifting power dynamics and the new global agenda. Placing less emphasis than his predecessor on the pursuit of American primacy, Obama envisions--indeed, insists-that other global powers assume new responsibilities. Notwithstanding its multilateral instincts, though, the Obama administration is limited in its practical ability to promote and embrace sweeping reforms to global governance. Therefore, rather than casting its lot entirely with universal organizations like the United Nations, the United States will adopt a pragmatic approach to international cooperation that combines formal institutions with more flexible partnerships to achieve US national interests. The balance sheet for Obama＇s first year in office underscores both the opportunities for and the constraints on global governance reform in the current geopolitical environment.     

Boundaries beyond borders: Delineating democratic 'peoples' in a globalizing world

This article analyzes the result of attempting to enforce democracy in Haiti. The objective of the international intervention, as stated in United Nations Security Council Resolution 940, was the return of democracy. However, the process in Haiti after the intervention was riddled with problems. The article establishes the Haitian attitudes towards what happened and shows that the type of governance that has been put in place is not what they had expected. It argues that although the international community seems to consider the intervention a success, the objective of the United Nations Resolution has not been reached, because of the international community's unwillingness to consolidate the essential factors upon which to build a democratic society.     

全球公共卫生治理的制度重叠及其应对之策

近年来,全球公共卫生治理体系彼此通过议题联结、成员联系和功能互动形成了密切的国际制度重叠,包括以世卫组织为核心的联合国诸公共卫生制度、以盖茨基金会等为代表的非正式公共卫生制度、以二十国集团为代表的涉卫新型国际制度以及特朗普政府试图打造的美式国际公共卫生制度。制度重叠是国际公共卫生秩序的结构性特征,可能会约束与限制世卫组织治理有效性的发挥。全球公共卫生议题的复杂性、全球公共卫生治理的政治化倾向和世卫组织的治理限度决定了协同治理具有必然性和紧迫性,为此,国际社会需要秉持人类卫生健康共同体理念,坚持公共卫生多边主义,警惕美国另起炉灶对全球公共卫生治理的冲击。同时,世卫组织发挥协同治理功能的制度化需求迫在眉睫。此外,新型国际公共卫生治理制度是推动多元制度协同治理的重要力量,将发挥愈加凸显的关键作用。作为国际公共卫生体系的重要成员,中国的负责任国际承诺为国际公共卫生制度重叠提供了重要的协调路径,中国支持世卫组织发挥领导作用,加强在联合国、二十国集团、世贸组织、金砖国家集团等多边制度框架内的协调配合和相互支撑,推动构建人类卫生健康共同体。     

联合阵线与美国军事干涉

作为国际体系中的唯一超级大国,美国是冷战后海外用兵最为频繁、进行军事干涉行动次数最多的国家。研究者们通常认为,美国的军事干涉在决策和实施上具有很强的单边主义色彩,其突出特征是动辄使用或威胁使用武力,在决定使用武力时一意孤行,时常将自身意志凌驾于联合国和国际法之上。通过考察冷战后美国在伊拉克战争、阿富汗战争、利比亚战争等重大军事干涉行动中的选择可以发现,尽管美国在使用武力的决策上较少受到国际社会的有效约束,但它在军事干涉行动中既不是纯粹依靠自身力量单干,也不是依靠其缔造的多边或双边军事同盟,而是经常性地采取联合阵线的方式执行军事打击和战后维稳行动。联合阵线的目标确定性及手段灵活性为美国主导军事干涉行动提供了便利,而规避集体行动的困境、让伙伴承担军事行动的负担、为干涉行动寻找合法性以及减少美国的投入和损失等考量,也使得美国具有招募多国参与其军事行动的强烈动机。由于当前国际体系结构的制约,不少国家倾向于加入美国的军事干涉联合阵线,以便在美国主导的等级体系中获取安全保障和经济利益。     

The Uses and Limits of the Model United Nations in an International Relations Classroom

The Model United Nations, already a mainstay of many undergraduate institutions, not only provides a useful framework for particular classes, but also offers an opportunity to integrate several elements of an undergraduate international studies curriculum. However, it is not without challenges for the instructor. To use the Model United Nations format effectively requires the instructor to plan carefully, coordinate activities with the other elements of a class, and never allow the "game" to overwhelm the learning. When done correctly, the excitement generated by the Model United Nations can be a key for opening the world to students who might otherwise have drifted through the mandatory introduction to international relations. The process of student teaching student, both within and across courses, is beneficial for the experienced student and the novice alike, encouraging peer interaction and cooperative learning. As an instructional device, the Model UN is not a panacea, but a valuable supplement to more conventional teaching methods.     

International Organizations and Government Killing: Does Naming and Shaming Save Lives?

Do international organizations affect government killing? Extant work has studied international organizations' effects on a set of human rights, but has not examined the abilities of specific actors to protect specific rights. I analyze naming and shaming by three types of international organizations (human rights nongovernmental organizations [NGOs], the news media, and the United Nations), focusing on their impacts on a single type of abuse: one-sided government killing. I present a principal-agent theory in which the government develops a preference for killing, and then delegates the murderous task to a set of individual perpetrators. The theory reveals new ways for international organizations to make killing costly, and statistical analyses support my expectations: By calling attention to abusive states, human rights NGOs and the United Nations can reduce both the likelihood and severity of state-sponsored murder. I also find that international organizations are better equipped to prevent killing from the beginning than to limit mounting body counts once it has begun.     

New Changes in the International Situation and China's Strategic Choices

The international situation is evolving more impressively than it has at any time since the end of the Cold War.Globalization has been in decline.Nations are scrambling to gain greater influence.The international strategic pattern is being adjusted.Many countries have problems with public management,and are faced with a new array of social trends and increasingly popular movements.The world is entering a new era full of chaos and anxiety.Mankind once again faces significant trade-offs and choices in peace and conflict,development and recession,openness and isolation,liberalism and conservatism.China strives to advocate win-win cooperation and lead the trend of reform and opening to maintain a favorable external environment despite world chaos,and enhance status and institutional rights in the international system.China's 30 years of development was successful in the process of integrating into the existing international system;China is a participant as well as a builder of the international system,rather than a challenger or a subversive.In the future,with a constructive attitude,China will promote the international system in a more reasonable direction together with international partners,in order to better safeguard world peace and security,and promote sustainable development throughout the world.     

中国参与联合国国际减灾合作问题研究

联合国为各国政府参与国际减灾合作提供了一个良好的平台,在协调人道主义救灾援助、转让减灾技术、促进国际交流、促进减灾框架与气候框架挂钩等领域开展减灾合作。中国作为联合国常任理事国和负责任的大国,将努力推进由联合国主导的国际减灾合作,进一步提升中国的防灾减灾能力和国际影响。     

国际货币体系改革与全球金融安全机制构建:关联与问题JP〗*

国际货币体系是全球金融安全机制构建的制度基础,从国际货币体系改革分析其与全球金融安全机制构建之间的关联性具有重要的政策含义。国际货币体系改革与全球金融安全网构建具有内在的逻辑关联。国际货币体系风险处置和危机应对功能使得全球金融稳定和安全具有了基础保障;国际货币体系对于流动性管理的重视和全球流动性管理机制建设有利于保持全球流动性的稳定;国际汇率协调有利于国际收支失衡改善和汇率基本稳定;国际货币体系改革还争取通过机制安排来弱化货币中心国的政策外溢效应;国际货币体系的治理结构改革是全球金融安全体系的基础保障之一。但是,国际货币体系改革与全球金融安全机制构建面临着诸如国际货币体系安全的内生矛盾、全球金融安全体系短板、全球与区域金融安全网络的迭代以及改革泛政治化等问题。基于国际货币体系与全球金融安全的内在关联,应在促进布雷顿森林机构的改革、构建全球金融安全网、建立流动性管理机制、推进超主权货币建设、深化区域货币合作五个方面,推进全球金融安全体系的建设,保障全球金融稳定。     

加强中国与东盟能源安全合作的国际法思考

中国与东盟的能源安全合作已从现实和制度层面展开,但是仍然存在能源产品出口受到限制、能源运输通道安全受到威胁、南海问题向国际化方向发展等问题,应当注重国际法规范在保障中国与东盟能源安全合作中的作用,利用联合国条约体系、WTO协议和CAFTA协议,充分认识ECT和NAFTA协定的借鉴意义。     

The United Nations Plan to Establish an Armed Jewish Force to Implement the Partition Plan (United Nations Resolution 181)

On 29 November 1947, the United Nations General Assembly voted to partition Palestine into two independent states, Jewish and Arab, with Jerusalem as a corpus separatum under international control. The General Assembly then established the United Nations Palestine Commission to implement partition. Amongst other things, the Commission was to establish “armed militias” under UN supervision to help realise the plan. The analysis examines various aspects of the sequence of events related to this idea, from its conception in the General Assembly to its death in February 1948. It demonstrates that under the militia clause, the United Nations intended to rely on the Jews’ main military organisation – the Haganah – to establish the Jewish state and shows how and why this plan went awry despite the converging interests of the Jews and the United Nations.     

The right to self-determination and the indigenous people of Western Sahara

This paper discusses the right to self-determination of the indigenous people of Western Sahara. It studies their post-colonial struggle for self-determination, which has been denied owing to Morocco's occupation and forcible annexation of their territory in 1975. It also looks into the process by which the right of the Sahrawi people to self-determination has been institutionalized within the United Nations (UN) system as well as the ongoing UN peace efforts to implement this right and the prospects to which they may lead. Overall, the paper seeks to demonstrate that the continuation of the conflict in Western Sahara is a strong reminder of an enduring violation of a fundamental norm of international law, and the responsibility of the UN and the international community as a whole to redress this aberrant situation.     

Imperatives of Peace in South Asia

For the past 54 years, South Asia has been mired in tension and conflicts. The root cause of these problems is the unresolved Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan. The United Nations, despite its Charter obligation to maintain international peace and security, has been unable to resolve this dispute. Kashmir, itself, has been turned into a nuclear flashpoint and poses a threat to international peace and security. The challenge before the international community, and especially the United States, therefore, is to become involved in resolving the dispute in accordance with the relevant Security Council resolutions and in conformity with the wishes of the Kashmiri people. India must show its good faith by eschewing hegemonic designs, abandoning bellicosity and brinkmanship, and sincerely joining Pakistan in overcoming all bilateral problems. It is time to restore peace and stability in South Asia. To achieve that, the international community, especially the United States, must play their due role.     

Injustice ignored: a case study of the irregular sea migration of the Rohingyan boat people

Migration has always been a sensitive issue as it is oftentimes driven by a sense of tragedy and loss. This paper examines the irregular sea migration of the Rohingyan Muslims who fled from Myanmar in order to escape state-sponsored socio-cultural persecution. In their quest to find sanctuary in neighboring states such as Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees report that thousands are now missing at sea, drowned, or detained in holding centers for undocumented migrants. It is against this factual backdrop that the author has chosen to make an analysis of a coastal state's rights to maritime border control vis a vis its established obligations to irregular sea migrants under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue, the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, the Refugee Convention, and various international human rights instruments. Finally, key regional and bilateral initiatives that deal with the issue will be examined.     

改革开放30年的中国外交和理论创新

今年是改革开放30周年。30年来,中国发生了巨变,国际形势也发生了根本性变化,国际体系进入转型期,在新形势下,中国外交在邓小平思想的指导下,创造性地运用科学发展观,初步建立了自己的外交理论体系,实现了中国与外部世界关系的重大转换,为国内经济建设营造和平的外部环境做出了重要贡献。