Research Guides: Charter of the United Nations (1945) Research Guide: Provisions of the UN Charter related to Membership & Principal Organs

UN Documentation Research Guides

UN Charter Provisions Related to UN Membership

UN Charter, Chapter II, Articles 3-6 concern Membership in the UN. Only states can be members of the United Nations.

Membership in different organs of the UN varies.

Membership of the principal organs is determined by the Charter of the United Nations and the Statute of the International Court of Justice:

According to the UN Charter, Article 9, "The General Assembly shall consist of all the Members of the United Nations"
According to the UN Charter, Article 23, "The Security Council shall consist of fifteen Members of the United Nations"; there are five permanent members and ten non-permanent members, five of which are elected each year by the General Assembly for a two-year term
According to UN Charter, Article 61, "The Economic and Social Council shall consist of fifty-four Members of the United Nations elected by the General Assembly"; eighteen Members are elected each year for a three-year term
According to the Statute of the International Court of Justice, Chapter I, Articles 2-33, the ICJ is composed of fifteen "independent judges, elected regardless of their nationality from among persons of high moral character, who possess the qualifications required in their respective countries for appointment to the highest judicial offices, or are jurisconsults of recognized competence in international law"; five members are elected every three years for nine year terms. The General Assembly and Security Council independently elect the judges and candidates must obtain an absolute majority in both organs

In accordance with the Charter, the General Assembly (Article 22), Security Council (Article 29) and the Economic and Social Council (Article 68) may establish subsidiary organs.The decision to establish a subsidiary organ (also called the mandate) usually includes:

Type of members: e.g. states or individuals serving in personal capacity
Number of members
Distribution of seats according to equitable geographical distribution among the regional groups
Method of electing members
Length of term of membership
Example: A/RES/60/251 establishing the Human Rights Council

Additional Resources

Websites, research guides, and FAQs with more information.

Charter of the United Nations (1945) Research Guide
by Dag Hammarskjöld Library Last Updated Feb 29, 2024 2694 views this year
UN Membership
by Dag Hammarskjöld Library Last Updated Mar 4, 2024 59126 views this year
UN System Documentation
by Dag Hammarskjöld Library Last Updated Apr 1, 2024 37384 views this year

Key UN Charter Provisions Related to the General Assembly

Chapter IV : Articles 9-22 : General Assembly

Article 9 : Composition
Articles 10-17 : Functions and Powers
Articles 18-19 : Voting
Articles 20-22 : Procedures

UN Charter Research Links

Charter of the United Nations website The Charter of the United Nations on the UN website, organized by chapter, with an introduction that explains the amendments to the text. Links to the text of the Charter in other official UN languages.
Repertory of Practice of United Nations Organs Analytical studies of the decisions of the UN principal organs under each of the Articles of the Charter ; Comprehensive summary of the decisions of United Nations Organs, together with review of related material, organized by Charter Articles.
Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly website Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly on the UN website, includes current text of the Rules, link to the official issuance, and comments on some procedural practices.
Search in the UN Digital Library for General Assembly Rules of Procedure Search for documentsymbol:"A/520*" AND "rules of procedure" returns all revisions of the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly

Key UN Charter Provisions Related to the Security Council

Chapter V : Articles 23-32 : The Security Council

Article 23 : Composition
Article 24-26 : Functions and Powers
Article 27 : Voting
Articles 28-32 : Procedure

Chapter VI : Articles 33-38 : Pacific Settlement of Disputes

Chapter VII : Articles 39-51: Action with Respect to Threats to the Peace, Breaches of the Peace, and Acts of Aggression

Article 41 : concerns "measures not involving the use of armed force"
Article 51 : concerns "the inherent right of individual or collective self-defence"

Chapter VIII : Articles 52-54 : Regional Arrangements

UN Charter Provisions Related to the Economic and Social Council

Chapter X : Economic and Social Council : Articles 61-72

Article 61 : Composition
Articles 62-66 : Functions and Powers
Article 67 : Voting
Articles 68-72 : Procedure

UN Charter Provisions Related to the International Court of Justice

Charter of the United Nations

Chapter III: Organs : Article 7
Chapter VI: Pacific Settlement of Disputes : Article 36
Chapter XIV : International Court of Justice : Articles 92-96

Statute of the International Court of Justice

Chapter I: Organization of the Court : Articles 2 - 33
Chapter II: Competence of the Court : Articles 34 - 38
Chapter III: Procedure : Articles 39 - 64
Chapter IV: Advisory Opinions : Articles 65 - 68
Chapter V: Amendment : Articles 69 & 70

The International Court of Justice was established by the UN Charter. The Statute of the International Court of Justice is annexed to the Charter and is an integral part of the UN Charter. According to the ICJ website, the main purpose of the Statute is to organize the composition and functioning of the Court.

Charter of the United Nations website The Charter of the United Nations on the UN website, organized by chapter, with an introduction that explains the amendments to the text. Links to the text of the Charter in other official UN languages.
Statute of the International Court of Justice website Text of the Statute on the ICJ website with links to other Basic Documents, including UN Charter, Rules of Court, Practice Directions.

UN Documentation: International Court of Justice
by Dag Hammarskjöld Library Last Updated Mar 8, 2024 8216 views this year
UN International Law Documentation
by Dag Hammarskjöld Library Last Updated Mar 8, 2024 11768 views this year

UN Charter Provisions Related to Non-Self-Governing Territories and the UN Trusteeship Council

Chapter XI : Articles 73-74 : Declaration Regarding Non-Self-Governing Territories

Chapter XII : Articles 75-85 : International Trusteeship System

Chapter XIII : Articles 86-91 : The Trusteeship Council

Article 86 : Composition
Articles 87-88 : Functions and Powers
Article 89 : Voting
Articles 90-91 : Procedure

UN Trusteeship Council Documentation
by Dag Hammarskjöld Library Last Updated Dec 29, 2023 9190 views this year
UN Documentation: Decolonization
by Dag Hammarskjöld Library Last Updated Feb 29, 2024 607 views this year

UN Charter Provisions Related to the Secretariat

Chapter III : Organs : Article 7

Chapter XV : The Secretariat : Articles 97-101

Charter of the United Nations website
The Charter of the United Nations on the UN website, organized by chapter, with an introduction that explains the amendments to the text. Links to the text of the Charter in other official UN languages.
UN Secretary-General website
UN Secretariat website
List of UN Secretariat departments and offices with links to their websites.

UN Secretariat Documentation
by Dag Hammarskjöld Library Last Updated Dec 29, 2023 4499 views this year

Overview of the Charter of the United Nations

Charter of the United Nations and Statute of the International Court of Justice / United Nations
The Charter of the United Nations is the founding document of the United Nations and a multilateral treaty. It was signed on 26 June 1945, in San Francisco, at the conclusion of the United Nations Conference on International Organization, and came into force on 24 October 1945.
The United States serves as treaty depositary of the Charter of the United Nations and the US National Archives holds the original signed certified true copy of the UN Charter. The UN Office of Legal Affairs Treaty Section maintains information about the status of the UN Charter in the UN Treaty Collection website.

The Charter of the United Nations has the following parts:

Preamble

Chapter I : Purposes and Principles

Articles 1-2

Chapter II : Membership

Articles 3-6

Chapter III : Organs

Articles 7-8

Chapter IV : The General Assembly

Articles 9-22

Chapter V : The Security Council

Articles 23-32

Chapter VI : Pacific Settlement of Disputes

Articles 33-38

Chapter VII : Action with Respect to Threats to the Peace, Breaches of the Peace, and Acts of Aggression

Articles 39-51

Chapter VIII : Regional Arrangements

Articles 52-54

Chapter IX : International Economic and Social Cooperation

Articles 55-60

Chapter X : The Economic and Social Council

Articles 61-72

Chapter XI : Declaration Regarding Non-Self-Governing Territories

Articles 73-74

Chapter XII : International Trusteeship System

Articles 75-85

Chapter XIII : The Trusteeship Council

Articles 86-91

Chapter XIV : The International Court of Justice

Articles 92-96

Chapter XV : The Secretariat

Articles 97-101

Chapter XVI : Miscellaneous Provisions

Articles 102-105

Chapter XVII : Transitional Security Arrangements

Articles 106-107

Chapter XVIII : Amendments

Articles 108-109

Chapter XIX : Ratification and Signature

Articles 110-111

Statute of the International Court of Justice

Chapter I : Articles 2 - 33 : Organization of the Court

Chapter II : Articles 34 - 38 : Competence of the Court

Chapter III : Articles 39 - 64 : Procedure

Chapter IV : Articles 65 - 68 : Advisory Opinions

Chapter V : Articles 69 & 70 : Amendment

Amendments

Amendments to Articles 23, 27 and 61 : A/RES/1991(XVIII) adopted on 17 December 1963
Amendment to Article 109 : A/RES/2101(XX) adopted on 20 December 1965
Amendment to Article 61 : A/RES/2847(XXVI) adopted on 20 December 1971

Charter of the United Nations website The Charter of the United Nations on the UN website, organized by chapter, with an introduction that explains the amendments to the text. Links to the text of the Charter in other official UN languages.
Statute of the International Court of Justice website Text of the Statute on the ICJ website with links to other Basic Documents, including UN Charter, Rules of Court, Practice Directions.
UN Treaty Collection: Status of UN Charter and Statute of the ICJ
US Department of State Office of Treaty Affairs website The United States serves as the depositary of the Charter of the United Nations, in accordance with Article 110 of the Charter.
US National Archives Catalog : Charter of the United Nations The National Archives of the United States holds the original signed certified true copy of the Charter of the UN. This link provides access to the scan of the Charter, including signatures.