UN Security Council Documentation

The General Assembly, Security Council and Economic and Social Council all have official records. Some conferences may also have official records.

The Regulations for the Control and Limitation of Documentation, ST/AI/189/Add.3/Rev.2, define official records:

The Official Records are a series of printed publications relating to the proceedings of the principal organs of the United Nations or certain United Nations conferences; they include verbatim or summary records of the meetings of the organ concerned, annexes and supplements.

In general, official records currently consist of meeting records and supplements, including the resolutions and decisions of the organ.

Reports and other selected documents were issued as annexes or supplements to the official records. 

Prior to the online availability of UN documents, the Official Records were often the only source available to scholars for UN documentation research. They are widely cited in both UN and non-UN publications.

Official Records were distributed to UN Depository Libraries and may have been collected by other libraries and research institutions.

The Security Council Official Records (SCOR) consist of:

• meeting records
• supplements, including
• checklist of documents
• selected documents
• last issued for the 53rd year (1998)
• special supplements
• reports of other organs or subsidiary bodies requested by the Security Council
• last issued for the 47th year (1992)
• resolutions, decisions, and presidential statements

Annual compilations of Security Council resolutions, decisions, and presidential statements, cover the period from 1 August - 31 July, and form part of the Security Council Official Records (SCOR). They are organized by topic, not sequentially.

• symbol pattern: S/INF/--
• example: S/INF/70

From 1994-2005, there were unofficial Press Release compilations which were issued much in advance of the official publication.