page_title: United Nations
section_title: General Assembly
hierarchical_section_title: United Nations / Structure / General Assembly
caption_attribution_description: English: “Mikhail Gorbachev addressing UN General Assembly session”. December 1988. Mikhail Gorbachev, General Secretary of the Soviet Communist Party's Central Committee and Chairman of the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet [Parliament], addressing a UN General Assembly session during his official visit to the United States. The mural rear left is by Fernand Léger. Русский: «Выступление Михаила Горбачева на сессии Генеральной ассамблеи ООН». Генеральный секретарь ЦК КПСС, Председатель Президиума Верховного Совета СССР Михаил Сергеевич Горбачев выступает на сессии Генеральной ассамблеи ООН во время официального визита в США. США, Нью-Йорк
context_page_description: The United Nations is an intergovernmental organization that aims to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations. It is the largest, most familiar, most internationally represented and most powerful intergovernmental organization in the world. The UN is headquartered on international territory in New York City, with its other main offices in Geneva, Nairobi, Vienna and The Hague.
  The UN was established after World War II with the aim of preventing future wars, succeeding the ineffective League of Nations. On 25 April 1945, 50 governments met in San Francisco for a conference and started drafting the UN Charter, which was adopted on 25 June 1945 and took effect on 24 October 1945, when the UN began operations. Pursuant to the Charter, the organization's objectives include maintaining international peace and security, protecting human rights, delivering humanitarian aid, promoting sustainable development, and upholding international law.
context_section_description: The General Assembly is the main deliberative assembly of the UN. Composed of all UN member states, the assembly meets in regular yearly sessions, but emergency sessions can also be called. The assembly is led by a president, elected from among the member states on a rotating regional basis, and 21 vice-presidents. The first session convened 10 January 1946 in the Methodist Central Hall in London and included representatives of 51 nations.
  When the General Assembly decides on important questions such as those on peace and security, admission of new members and budgetary matters, a two-thirds majority of those present and voting is required. All other questions are decided by a majority vote. Each member country has one vote. Apart from the approval of budgetary matters, resolutions are not binding on the members. The Assembly may make recommendations on any matters within the scope of the UN, except matters of peace and security that are under consideration by the Security Council.
  Draft resolutions can be forwarded to the General Assembly by its six main committees:
  First Committee (Disarmament and International Security)
  Second Committee (Economic and Financial)
  Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural)
  Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization)
  Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary)
  Sixth Committee (Legal)
  As well as by the following two committees:
  General Committee – a supervisory committee consisting of the assembly's president, vice-president, and committee heads
  Credentials Committee – responsible for determining the credentials of each member nation's UN representatives
caption: Mikhail Gorbachev, Soviet general secretary, addressing the UN General Assembly in December 1988
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