Jan. 15, 2023, 7:21 p.m.
Intent continues a series of publications in which we tell you which countries are members of certain international organizations and what role they play in the world. In the previous issues, we looked at the essence of the work of:
World Bank,
General Assembly,
Security Council,
International Court of Justice,
UNICEF,
Red Cross and others.
General characteristics of the UN
The United Nations consists of 193 states. All sovereign countries can be found among the UN member states, except for the Vatican. Such a respectable representation potentially allows for consideration of any global or regional issues. In particular, the UN is able to extinguish armed conflicts, as it did many times in the twentieth century (Iraq, the former Yugoslavia, Somalia).
The organization is headquartered in New York. The UN also has additional offices in Vienna, Geneva, Nairobi, and The Hague. The organization uses six official languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.
The UN structure includes six main bodies: The General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Secretariat, the International Court of Justice and the Trusteeship Council. However, the latter body has been formally suspended since 1994. The chief official of the UN is the Secretary-General. Since January 1, 2017, this position has been held by Portuguese politician and diplomat Antonio Guterres.
General description of the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research
The United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (hereinafter referred to as UNIDIR) is an organization established by the UN General Assembly to conduct research on international security and disarmament issues. UNIDIR sees its role as providing advice and ideas, as well as promoting international dialogue on disarmament. UNIDIR is headquartered in the same building as the United Nations Headquarters. The Institute is funded primarily by voluntary contributions from governments and private sponsors. UNIDIR was founded in 1980.
The UN Headquarters building that houses UNIDIR. Photo: Wikipedia
Governance of UNIDIR
The governing body of UNIDIR is the Board of Trustees. The functions of this body are performed by the UN Advisory Board on Disarmament Matters. The Board is responsible for the activities of the Institute, including financial matters. Members of the Board are elected by the UN Secretary-General from all regions of the world. The selection criteria are knowledge and experience. Currently, the Board consists of 14 members, including the representative of Russia, Anna Khlopkova.
The UNIDIR Board of Trustees. Photo: UNIDIR
The Institute is headed by a Director appointed by the UN Secretary-General. The Director is responsible for determining the strategic and tactical direction of UNIDIR. In 2021, German lawyer Robin Geiss was appointed to this position.
UNIDIR Director Robin Geiss. Photo: Glasgow Centre for International Law & Security
Activities of UNIDIR
Every year, UNIDIR works in more than 50 countries around the world. The organization's efforts can be divided into certain sectoral areas.
Weapons of mass destruction
UNIDIR consolidates the efforts of countries around the world to introduce new treaties on weapons of mass destruction and tries to revive the process of nuclear disarmament.
UNIDIR conducts research aimed at strengthening control over biological and chemical weapons. The institute also develops technologies and devices that can help strengthen control. Interestingly, a separate area of UNIDIR's research is aimed at overcoming obstacles to verifying compliance with weapons of mass destruction treaties in individual countries.
The Institute's researchers have developed a risk reduction model that allows analyzing options for potential use of nuclear weapons and preventing the implementation of these options in time.
Security and technology
UNIDIR works to maintain stability in cyberspace by implementing norms and recommendations previously agreed with UN member states. The Institute explores opportunities to strengthen cybersecurity and seeks effective crisis management mechanisms.
UNIDIR is exploring the possibilities of artificial intelligence and looking for ways to use it to strengthen control over arms proliferation. The Institute also monitors the emergence of any technological innovations.
Conventional weapons and ammunition
UNIDIR investigates the mechanisms and situations that contribute to the active illicit proliferation of conventional arms and ammunition. Knowledge of these mechanisms allows us to counteract the escalation of armed conflicts.
UNIDIR provides advice to UN member states and helps them to build their own system of control over the proliferation of conventional arms and ammunition.
Space security
UNIDIR is currently developing a space security portal to become a one-stop online hub for space security materials.
The Institute annually holds a conference on outer space security that resonates around the world. UNIDIR also organizes a significant number of seminars and meetings that help interested countries develop a common strategy for action.
In 2019, UNIDIR launched the Middle East as a Weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zone project. The project participants set themselves a number of tasks:
Dr. Cheng Zac Kane addresses the audience at the project launch on October 10, 2019. Photo: UNIDIR
The Institute publishes a variety of books, reports, and academic articles, as well as the quarterly Disarmament Forum in print and online.
UNIDIR on the impact of the Russian-Ukrainian war on the proliferation and use of weapons of mass destruction
At the end of August 2022, UNIDIR published an analytical report by American official Lewis Dunn, in which he attempts to assess the impact of the Russian-Ukrainian war on international agreements on arms proliferation in the world. It should be noted at the outset that Ukraine is only mentioned in the paper. The author is interested in the Russian-Ukrainian war as a trigger for changes in international relations. The most important issues are obviously related to nuclear weapons.
In the author's opinion, Russia's use of nuclear weapons is unlikely, but possible. Dunn believes that Russia has used nuclear weapons as a deterrent to the United States and NATO from more active intervention in the war. The researcher considers different and sometimes opposite options for the development of further events. In particular, he points to the possibility of intensification of nuclear programs in a number of countries (Iran, Saudi Arabia, Republic of Korea, Japan) due to the need to protect themselves or, conversely, to a certain decrease in activity due to fear of the possible consequences of a global nuclear conflict.
He is also interested in what will happen to international agreements on the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and arms control. Here, too, Dunn considers various scenarios, but he seems to be generally confident that the agreements will survive. The author predicts a certain revitalization of the US-China dialog because of the war. He also considers it important to know when the international community will be able to allow Russia to return to discussing arms proliferation agreements. According to the author, this will depend, in particular, on the continuation and consequences of the war.
Lewis Dunn's work on the impact of the Russian-Ukrainian war on the process of arms proliferation and control in the world. Photo: UNIDIR
The specificity of UNIDIR lies in the fact that the organization is actually a global research institute that deals with international security and disarmament issues. UNIDIR researches the problems of proliferation and control of conventional weapons and weapons of mass destruction, deals with cybersecurity and space security, and conducts its own research in the field of new technologies and artificial intelligence. The organization publishes many scientific papers and provides information support to countries that need it. The Institute tries to promote international dialogue on disarmament issues. For this purpose, conferences, seminars and meetings are held. Thus, it can be argued that UNIDIR has gained considerable authority in the world through the mediation of the UN. Another thing is that the influence of the Institute on international politics is quite limited.
Олег Пархітько