The Sustainable Development Report 2021 features the SDG Index and Dashboards, the first and widely used tool to assess country performance on the UN Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals. The report analyses and outlines what needs to happen for the Decade of Action and Delivery of the SDGs. In order to build back better following the Covid-19 pandemic, especially low-income countries will need increased fiscal space. The report frames the implementation of the SDGs in terms of six broad transformations. The authors examine country performance on the SDGs for 193 countries using a wide array of indicators, and calculate future trajectories, presenting a number of best practices to achieve the historic Agenda 2030. The views expressed in this report do not reflect the views of any organizations, agency or programme of the United Nations. This title is available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

Ending humanitarian atrocities has become as important for the United Nations as preventing interstate war. This book examines the transformation of UN operations, analysing its changing role and structure. Ramesh Thakur asks why, when and how force may be used, and argues that the growing gulf between legality and legitimacy is evidence of an eroded sense of international community. He considers the tension between the United States, with its capacity to use force and project power, and the United Nations, as the centre of the international law enforcement system. He asserts the central importance of the rule of law and a rules-based order focused on the United Nations as the foundation of a civilised system of international relations. This book will be of interest to students of the United Nations and international organisations in politics, law and international relations departments, as well as policymakers in governmental and non-governmental international organisations.

This annual report of the United Nations Committee on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) submitted to the General Assembly covers the Fifty-second session (8–19 July 2019).

How do religious groups, operating as NGOs, engage in the most important global institution for world peace? What processes do they adopt? Is there a "spiritual" UN today? This book is the first interdisciplinary study to present extensive fieldwork results from an examination of the activity of religious groups at the United Nations in New York and Geneva. Based on a three and half-year study of activities in the United Nations system, it seeks to show how "religion" operates in both visible and invisible ways. Jeremy Carrette, Hugh Miall, Verena Beittinger-Lee, Evelyn Bush and Sophie-Helene Trigeaud, explore the way "religion" becomes a "chameleon" idea, appearing and disappearing, according to the diplomatic aims and ambitions. Part 1 documents the challenges of examining religion inside the UN, Part 2 explores the processes and actions of religious NGOs - from diplomacy to prayer - and the specific platforms of intervention - from committees to networks - and Part 3 provides a series of case studies of religious NGOs, including discussion of Islam, Catholicism and Hindu and Buddhist NGOs. The study concludes by examining the place of diplomats and their views of religious NGOs and reflects on the place of "religion" in the UN today. The study shows the complexity of "religion" inside one of the most fascinating global institutions of the world today.

Global power structures are changing. The United States and Europe are losing ground, as countries such as China and India increase their global reach. At the same time that new global players emerge, multinational corporations, global civil society organizations, and international media carve out their own spaces in international affairs. How will these changes impact the legitimacy of the United Nations? In Shared Responsibility, Carsten Staur examines the ability of the UN to combine its normative functions - defining global objectives, rules, and standards - with practical assistance for its 193 member states. Staur focuses on transformative global challenges, where the UN has the potential to play a critical role in assisting vulnerable countries in the aftermath of conflict, in further developing the concept of "responsibility to protect," in creating a more forceful system of accountability for mass atrocity crimes, and in re-launching sustainable development as the future's principal global development approach and as the basis for dealing effectively with both climate change and the responsible management of global resources. An insider's look at the UN, Shared Responsibility details the problems faced by the United Nations and presents solutions for the organization to remain relevant, legitimate, and action-oriented in the twenty-first century.

A seasoned foreign correspondent shows how the UN privileges its own neutrality and interests above its founding mission of protecting humanity, with predictably tragic consequences From the killing fields of Rwanda and Srebrenica a decade ago to those of Darfur today, the United Nations has repeatedly failed to confront genocide. This is evinced, author and journalist Adam LeBor maintains, in a May 1995 document from Yasushi Akashi, the most senior UN official in the field during the Yugoslav wars, in which he refused to authorize air strikes against the Serbs for fear they would "weaken" Milosevic. More recently, in 2003, urgent reports from UN officials in the Sudan detailing atrocities from Darfur were ignored for a year because they were politically inconvenient. This book is the first to examine in detail the crucial role of the Secretariat, its relationship with the Security Council, and the failure of UN officials themselves to confront genocide. LeBor argues the UN must return to its founding principles, take a moral stand and set the agenda of the Security Council instead of merely following the lead of the great powers. LeBor draws on dozens of firsthand interviews with UN officials, current and former, and such international diplomats as Madeleine Albright, Richard Holbrooke, Douglas Hurd, and David Owen. This book will set the terms for discussion when UN Secretary General Kofi Annan steps down to make room for a new head of the world body, and political observers assess Annan's legacy and look to the future of the world organization.

UNESCO's charter establishes lofty goals for the organisation, stating that its aim "is to contribute to peace and security by promoting collaboration among the nations through education, science and culture in order to further respect for justice, for the rule of law and for the human rights and fundamental freedoms..." for all peoples of the world. Given such idealistic goals, UNESCO may seem set up for failure, but it has stuck to the charter and encouraged the inspiring contributions of many intellectuals. Beyond the world of ideas, UNESCO makes itself responsible for definitive international goals like the reduction of poverty, universal primary education, and sustainable development strategies. Despite these good intentions and aims, UNESCO has suffered criticism and politicisation over the years, although it continues to serve as a laboratory and standard-bearer for international co-operation. This book examines and assesses the past, present, and future of UNESCO. It affirms that UNESCO remains as relevant today as it was at its inception, particularly to developing nations.

For seven tumultuous years, the U.S.S. Voyager™ has explored the Delta Quadrant, encountering strange alien civilizations and bizarre space-time anomalies as it steadfastly made its way back toward the safety of Federation space. Captain Kathryn Janeway and her heroic crew have faced all manner of harrowing danger and hostile life-forms -- including the Kazons, the Borg, and the Q -- while never losing sight of their ultimate goal: home. Now, at last, Voyager's epic trek may be nearing its end...

After so many perilous and astounding adventures, will Captain Janeway finally bring her wayward starship back to the Alpha Quadrant? And what will become of her diverse yet tightly knit crew? Will Chakotay, B'Elanna Torres, and the other former Maquis freedom fighters face long-delayed justice for their crimes against the Federation? And is there any place in Starfleet for the uniquely independent Borg known as Seven of Nine?

As the ultimate destiny of Voyager is revealed, all that is certain is that nothing will ever be the same!

This work provides coverage of each of the principle organs of the United Nations. Covering the Security Council, the General Assembly, the Secretariat, the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council and the International Court of Justice. The book provides a survey of the life of each organ since its inception in 1945 and looks at the extent to which it has fulfilled its founding mission. The authors go on to analyze the interaction of each organ with the others in the UN system and to look at proposals for reform. As well as providing comprehensive coverage of the present role of this highly influential organization, the book addresses larger questions about the role of the UN and the fitness for purpose of its principle organs, as to a means of global governance.

A critical year in the history of peacekeeping, 1995 saw the dramatic transformation of the role of United Nations' forces in Bosnia from a protective force to being an active combatant under NATO leadership. Phillip Corwin, the UN's chief political officer in Sarajevo during the summer of that year, presents an insider's account of the momentous events that led to that transformation. "Dubious Mandate" interweaves personal experiences of daily life in a war zone--supply shortages, human suffering, assassination attempts, corruption--with historical facts, as Corwin challenges commonly held views of the war with his own highly informed, discerning, and trenchant political commentary.
Sympathetic to the UN's achievements, yet skeptical of its acquiescence to the use of military force, Corwin is critical both of the Bosnian government's tactics for drawing NATO into the conflict and of NATO's eagerness to make peace by waging war. He challenges the popular depiction of the Bosnian government as that of noble victim, arguing that the leaders of all three sides in the conflict were "gangsters wearing coats and ties." Highly caustic about Western reportage, he examines the policies of various Western political and military leaders and gives a detailed account of a pivotal phase of the war in Bosnia, a period that culminated with NATO's massive bombing of Bosnian Serb targets and ultimately led to the Dayton Peace Agreement. Without a proper understanding of this critical period, he argues, it is difficult to understand the greater scope of the conflict. Corwin also offers insightful portraits of some of the leading players in the Bosnian drama, including Yasushi Akashi, the UN's top official in the former Yugoslavia in 1994-95; General Rupert Smith, the British commander in Sarajevo in 1995; and Hasan Muratovic, a future Bosnian prime minister.
Capturing the essence of a tense and difficult time, "Dubious Mandate" will interest diplomats, politicians, military personnel, scholars, and those still trying to fathom the continuing mission of the United Nations and the unfolding of events in the former Yugoslavia during the 1990s.

Since the first edition of this book was published in 2010, United Nations peace operations have evolved significantly. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, and South Sudan, UN peacekeepers are now engaged in building peace by fighting non-State armed actors, and must consider issues concerning the application of law and policy governing the use of armed force when protecting civilians. In addition, the UN and its peacekeepers are increasingly being held to higher standards of accountability to ensure that their engagement with local forces and populations meets normative requirements found in international humanitarian law and international human rights law. This extensively revised edition of Documents on the Law of UN Peace Operations addresses the key normative principles, rules, and standards that have been a part of this evolution. The book provides essential documents, accompanied with commentary, which identify and explain the legal framework or applicable legal norms involved in the planning, management and conduct of UN peace operations. Topics covered include obligations under international humanitarian law, human rights law, international criminal law, and privileges and immunities. Special attention is also paid to matters such as accountability, the rule of law, and the protection of civilians.

This report presents international investment trends and prospects at global, regional and national levels, as well as the evolution of international production and global value chains. It analyses the latest developments in new policy measures for investment promotion, facilitation and regulation around the world, as well as updates on investment treaties, their reform and investment dispute settlement cases. It provides an overview of industrial policy models for countries at different development levels and the role of investment policies within each model. It analyses the investment policy implications of the new industrial revolution for high-, middle- and low-income countries and offers a toolkit for investment policymakers on how to use investment policies for new industrial development strategies.

This book examines recent attempts at reform within the United Nations in the wake of the institutional crisis provoked by the invasion of Iraq. It contends that efforts at reform have foundered owing to fundamental and bitter political disagreements between the nations of the global North and South.

Following profound discord in the Security Council in the lead up to the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, this book considers the ambitious programme of reform instigated by then serving UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. The author of this highly topical work, Spencer Zifcak, subjects six of Annan s principal proposals for reform to scrutiny: the reform of the Security Council, the General Assembly, and the Human Rights Council, and suggested alterations to international law with respect to the use of force in international affairs, the responsibility to protect, and UN strategies to counter global terrorism. On the basis of these detailed case-studies, the book demonstrates why so few proposals for reform were eventually adopted. It argues that the principal reason for this failure was that nations of the North and South could not agree as to the merits of the reforms proposed, exposing the sharply differing visions held by member states for a future and improved United Nations.

Founded upon extensive interviews with diplomats at the United Nations, the book provides a rare insider account of UN politics and practice. It will be of vital interest to students, scholars and practitioners of International Relations, International Law, and International Institutions.

In recent years the United Nations has become more active in - and more generally respected for - its peacekeeping efforts than at any other period in its fifty-year history. During the same period, the United States has been engaged in a debate about the place of the U.N. in the conduct of its foreign policy. This book, the first account of the American role in creating the United Nations, tells an engrossing story and also provides a useful historical perspective on the controversy. Prizewinning historians Townsend Hoopes and Douglas Brinkley explain how the idea of the United Nations was conceived, debated, and revised, first within the U.S. government and then by negotiation with its major allies in World War II. The experience of the war generated increasing support for the new organization throughout American society, and the U.N. Charter was finally endorsed by the community of nations in 1945. The story largely belongs to President Franklin Roosevelt, who was determined to form an organization that would break the vicious cycle of ever more destructive wars (in contrast to the failed League of Nations), and who therefore assigned collective responsibility for keeping the peace to the five leading U.N. powers - the major wartime Allies. Hoopes and Brinkley focus on Roosevelt but also present vivid portraits of others who played significant roles in bringing the U.N. into being: these include Cordell Hull, Sumner Welles, Dean Acheson, Harry Hopkins, Wendell Willkie, Thomas Dewey, Arthur Vandenberg, William Fulbright, Edward Stettinius, and Walter Lippmann. In an epilogue, the authors discuss the checkered history of the United Nations and consider its future prospects.

There hardly seems to be a global issue in the world today in which the United Nations (UN) is not expected to play a key role. And indeed, despite a persistent gulf between high expectations and the UN's capacities, the organization continues to be a unique and indispensable actor in areas such as peace maintenance, human rights protection, and development. Thoroughly revised and updated, the second edition of this highly acclaimed text provides a concise analysis of the UN, its structure and work, achievements and shortcomings, and its likely role and prospects in the twenty-first century. The new edition covers the latest institutional and structural developments - including the creation of the Peacebuilding Commission and the establishment of a permanent Human Rights Council - and reflects recent debates on UN reform.

Population growth, reproductive health and reproductive rights are amongst the most pressing issues facing governments and the international community. Since the world's governments agreed for the first time on far-reaching and enlightened population policies at the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo, a good deal of progress has been made on these issues, but major challenges remain.This fully updated edition of Creating a New Consensus on Population charts international progress on efforts to address population and development, reproductive health, reproductive rights, religion, contraception and the empowerment of women. Historical coverage includes the lead up process to the ICPD, the conference itself and the global consensus and the ICPD Programme of Action that resulted. The book then turns to how population issues have developed over the past decade and a half including follow-up and implementation at the international level by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and other UN agencies and organizations. Key international events are covered including the 1999 ICPD+5, Millennium Summit 2000, ICPD+10 and the 2005 MDG+5 as well as relevant regional events. The book also examines the reorientation of policies and programmes and implementation at national levels across the world. Crucially, it looks at emerging issues and partnerships including the increasing role of NGOs, women's groups, youth groups, foundations, public-private partnerships and other non-state stakeholders. Written by Jyoti Shankar Singh, former ICPD Executive Coordinator, this is the definitive account of how the international community has engaged with population issues and policies and it offers insight into both the ongoing challenges as well as how an international consensus can be forged on crucial global issues. It is essential reading for all those involved in population, health and development issues and policies world-wide.