United Nations System - Main organs of the un

1. The General Assembly, composed of representatives of all member states, is the

UN's central deliberative body, empowered to discuss and make
recommendations on any subject falling within the scope of the charter itself. It
also approves the UN's budget and determinesalone or with the Security
Councilpart of the composition of the other main organs, including the Security
Council.
2. The Security Council, a 15-member body, has primary responsibility for
maintaining international peace and security. In times of crisis, it is empowered
to act on behalf of all member states and to decide on a course of collective action
that is mandatory for the entire membership. The charter names five states as
permanent members of the Security Council: China, France, the United Kingdom,
Russian Federation, and the United States (those that were chiefly responsible for
the defeat of the Axis powers in 1945). The remaining Security Council members
are elected by the General Assembly for two-year terms.
3. The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is assigned the task of organizing
the UN's work on economic and social matters and the promotion of human
rights. It consists of 54 members elected for overlapping three-year terms by the
General Assembly.
4. The Trusteeship Council operated the UN trusteeship system established under
the charter. It was originally composed of member nations administering trust
territories, the permanent members of the Security Council, and a sufficient
number of other members, elected by the General Assembly for three-year terms,
to ensure an equal division of administering and nonadministering powers. After
1975, it was composed of the five permanent members of the Security Council
the United States, the sole remaining administering power, and the four
permanent nonadministering powers. The last trust territory, the Pacific island of
Palau, voted for affiliation with the United States in late 1993. The Trusteeship
Council voted in 1994 to suspend operation, convening only at the request of its

President, a majority of its member states, the General Assembly, or the Security
Council.
5. The International Court of Justice is the principal judicial organ of the UN. It
consists of 15 judges elected to nine-year terms by the General Assembly and the
Security Council voting independently. It may not include more than one judge of
any nationality. The Members of the Court do not represent their governments
but are independent magistrates.
6. The Secretariat is the administrative arm of the organization. It is headed by a
Secretary-General appointed by the General Assembly upon the recommendation
of the Security Council for a five-year, renewable term.