(Redirected from United Nations Member States)
As of 2007, there are 192 '
United Nations (UN) member states'. Each member state is a member of the
United Nations General Assembly.
According to the
United Nations Charter, Chapter 2, Article 4, the admission of any
state to membership in the UN "will be effected by a decision of the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the
Security Council."
[1] In principle, only
sovereign states can become UN members, and today all UN members are fully sovereign states. However, four of the original members (
Belarus,
India, the
Philippines, and
Ukraine) were not independent at the time of their admission. Moreover, because a state can only be admitted by the approval of the Security Council and the General Assembly, some entities which may be considered
sovereign states according to the
Montevideo Convention are not members due to the facts that the UN do not consider them to be sovereign states, the lack of international recognition or opposition from certain members.
International organizations,
non-governmental organizations, and entities whose statehood or sovereignty are not precisely defined, can only become
United Nations General Assembly observers, allowing them to speak, but not vote, in General Assembly meetings.
Current members
UN member states displayed by the decade in which they
joined the UN.
The members are listed below by alphabetical order in their short-form English names, with their respective dates of admission. There were 51 original members of the UN which were admitted in 1945, of which 49 are either still in the organization or had their seats taken by a
successor state (e.g., the
USSR's seat was succeeded by
Russia). The other two original members were
Czechoslovakia and
Yugoslavia, as both had dissolved and their seats were not succeeded by any state (see ''
Former members: Czechoslovakia'' and ''
Former members: Yugoslavia'' respectively). For
China's seat in the UN, the
Republic of China was replaced by the
People's Republic of China on
25 October 1971, even though the governments of both have existed well before and after this date (see ''
Seat of China'').
''Indicates original member''
Former members
Czechoslovakia
'
Czechoslovakia' joined the UN as an original member on
24 October 1945. On
10 December 1992, Czechoslovakia informed the
United Nations Secretary-General that it would cease to exist after
31 December 1992, and that both its successor states, the ''
Czech Republic'' and ''
Slovakia'', would apply for UN membership. They were admitted on
19 January 1993.
East Germany and West Germany
Both the 'German Democratic Republic' (
East Germany) and the 'Federal Republic of Germany' (
West Germany) were admitted on
18 September 1973. The two countries were reunified on
3 October 1990, through the accession of the German Democratic Republic to the Federal Republic of Germany, and have since been represented as one member under the name ''
Germany''.
Tanganyika and Zanzibar
'
Tanganyika' was admitted on
14 December 1961, and '
Zanzibar' was admitted on
16 December 1963. The two countries were unified to form the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar on
26 April 1964, and have since been represented as one member, which changed its name to the ''
United Republic of Tanzania'' on
1 November 1964.
United Arab Republic
Both Egypt and Syria joined the UN as original members on
24 October 1945. The two countries were unified to form the '
United Arab Republic' following a plebiscite on
21 February 1958, and were represented as one member until
13 October 1961, when ''
Syria'', having resumed its status as an independent state, resumed its separate membership in the UN. ''
Egypt'' continued as a UN member under the name United Arab Republic until
2 September 1971, when it changed its name to the ''Arab Republic of Egypt''.
USSR
The '
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics' (USSR) was one of the five original founders of the UN in 1945 and joined the UN as an original member on
24 October 1945. On
24 December 1991, upon the imminent dissolution of the USSR,
Boris Yeltsin, the
President of Russia, informed the
United Nations Secretary-General that the membership of the USSR in the UN (including its permanent seat on the
Security Council) was being continued by ''
Russia'' with the support of the 11 member countries of the
Commonwealth of Independent States.
The remaining former Soviet Republics are currently all UN members:
★ ''
Belarus'' and ''
Ukraine'' had already joined the UN as original members on
24 October 1945, represented by the
Byelorussian SSR and the
Ukrainian SSR respectively until their independence in 1991.
★ ''
Estonia'', ''
Latvia'' and ''
Lithuania'' were admitted on
17 September 1991.
★ ''
Armenia'', ''
Azerbaijan'', ''
Kazakhstan'', ''
Kyrgyzstan'', ''
Moldova'', ''
Tajikistan'', ''
Turkmenistan'', and ''
Uzbekistan'' were admitted on
2 March 1992.
★ ''
Georgia'' was admitted on
31 July 1992.
North and South Yemen
'Yemen' (
North Yemen) was admitted on
30 September 1947, first represented by the
Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen, then by the
Yemen Arab Republic. 'Democratic Yemen' (
South Yemen) was originally admitted as "Southern Yemen" on
14 December 1967, represented by the People's Republic of South Yemen, which later changed its name to the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen. The two countries were unified to form the Republic of Yemen on
22 May 1990, and have since been represented as one member under the name ''
Yemen''.
Yugoslavia
'
Yugoslavia' joined the UN as an original member on
24 October 1945, represented by the Democratic Federal Yugoslavia, which later changed its name to the
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia had been dissolved by 1992, and the
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was formed on
28 April 1992 by the former Yugoslav Republics of Serbia and Montenegro. By General Assembly resolution A/RES/47/1 on
22 September 1992, the UN "considers that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) cannot continue automatically the membership of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the United Nations, and therefore decides that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) should apply for membership in the United Nations and that it shall not participate in the work of the General Assembly."
The former Yugoslav Republics are currently all UN members:
★ ''
Bosnia and Herzegovina'', ''
Croatia'' and ''
Slovenia'' were admitted on
22 May 1992.
★ ''
Macedonia'' was admitted on
8 April 1993, provisionally under the name "The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia", pending settlement over the
difference that had arisen over its name.
★ The
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was admitted on
1 November 2000, replacing, instead of succeeding, the seat of Yugoslavia in the UN held by the former
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which officially remained a UN member until that day. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia changed its name to '
Serbia and Montenegro' on
4 February 2003. Since the declaration of independence by Montenegro on
3 June 2006, the membership of Serbia and Montenegro in the UN has been continued by ''
Serbia'' on the basis of Article 60 of the
Constitutional Charter of Serbia and Montenegro.
★ ''
Montenegro'' was admitted on
28 June 2006.
Seat of China
Main articles: China and the United Nations
'
China', represented by the government of the '
Republic of China' (ROC), was one of the five original founders of the UN in 1945 and joined the UN as an original member on
24 October 1945. However, as a result of the
Chinese Civil War, the
Kuomintang-controlled ROC government fled to
Taiwan in 1949, with the
Communist government of the '
People's Republic of China' (PRC), declared on
1 October 1949, taking control of most of the territory of China. Representatives of the ROC government continued to represent China at the UN, despite the small size of the ROC's jurisdiction of Taiwan (and
other islands not considered part of
Taiwan Province) compared to the PRC's jurisdiction of
mainland China, until
25 October 1971, when
General Assembly resolution 2758 was passed, recognising the PRC government as the only legitimate representative of China at the UN, and expelling the representatives of the
Chiang Kai-shek-led ROC government from the UN. This effectively transferred the seat of China in the UN (including its permanent seat on the
Security Council) from the ROC to the PRC.
Bids for membership by Taiwan
Since 1991, the Republic of China has repeatedly petitioned to rejoin the UN, as the representative of the people of Taiwan only, instead of all of China, using the designation "Republic of China on Taiwan", "Republic of China (Taiwan)", or just "Taiwan" (as proposed by the current
Democratic Progressive Party government). However, all attempts have been denied, either because the petition failed to get sufficient votes to get on the formal agenda, or because the application was rejected by the UN, due primarily to the opposition of the People's Republic of China. The ROC has also been denied participation in the UN as an "observer state", a position held by the
Holy See, or as a "non-member entity", a title currently granted to
Palestine (see ''
Observers and non-members'').
In July 2007, the current
Chen Shui-bian-led ROC government submitted the ROC's 15th application to join the UN, and its first under the name "Taiwan", but its application was rejected by the UN Office of Legal Affairs, citing General Assembly resolution 2758.
[31] Responding to the application,
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon stated that:
Responding to UN's rejection of its application, the ROC government has stated that Taiwan is not now nor has it ever been under the jurisdiction of the PRC, and that since General Assembly resolution 2758 did not clarify the issue of Taiwan's representation in the UN, it does not prevent Taiwan's participation in the UN as an independent sovereign nation. The ROC government, as well as several international newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal,
[32] also criticized Ban for returning the application without passing it to the Security Council or the General Assembly, contrary to UN's standard procedure (Provisional Rules of Procedure of the Security Council, Chapter X, Rule 59),
[33] and for asserting that Taiwan is part of China.
[34] On the other hand, the PRC government, which has stated that Taiwan is part of China, praised that UN's decision "was made in accordance with the UN Charter and Resolution 2758 of the UN General Assembly, and showed the UN and its member states' universal adherence to the
one-China principle."
[35] While the PRC government firmly opposes the application of any Taiwan authorities to join the UN or any of its agencies, such as the
World Health Organization, the ROC government continues to call on the international community to recognize the right of the island's 23 million citizens to participate in the meetings and activities of the UN and its affiliates. Currently, 23 UN member states and the Holy See maintain
diplomatic relations with the ROC.
Observers and non-members
Main articles: United Nations General Assembly observers
In addition to the member states discussed above, there is one non-member observer state, the ''
Holy See'' (which holds sovereignty over the state of
Vatican City). It has been a permanent observer state since
6 April 1964. Non-member observer states are recognized as sovereign entities, and are free to submit a petition to join as a full member at their discretion. For example,
Switzerland was also a permanent observer state from 1948 to 2002, until becoming a full member on
10 September 2002.
The
Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was granted observer status by General Assembly resolution 3237 on
22 November 1974. After the proclaimed declaration of the
State of Palestine by the PLO, its designation in the UN was changed to ''Palestine'' by General Assembly resolution A/RES/43/177 on
15 December 1988. Palestine's status in the UN is "a non-member entity".
The sovereignty status of
Western Sahara is in dispute between
Morocco and the
Polisario Front. Most of the territory is administered by Morocco, the remainder (the
Free Zone) by the
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), proclaimed by the Polisario Front. The SADR is a full member of the
African Union, but is neither a member nor observer of the UN.
The
associated states of
New Zealand, the
Cook Islands and
Niue, while self-governing in their domestic affairs, have their foreign affairs represented by New Zealand, and are not UN members.
Many
international organizations,
non-governmental organizations, and entities whose statehood or sovereignty are not precisely defined, such as the
European Union, the
International Committee of the Red Cross, and the
Sovereign Military Order of Malta, are invited to become observers at the General Assembly.
Naming conventions and notes
1. Charter of the United Nations, Chapter 2
2. 'Belarus' was originally admitted as the "Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic", before declaring independence in 1991. It informed the UN that it had changed its name from "Byelorussia" to its current name on 19 September 1991.
3. 'Benin' was originally admitted as "Dahomey", before changing its name in 1975.
4. 'Brunei' currently takes its seat under the name "Brunei Darussalam".
5. 'Burkina Faso' was originally admitted as "Upper Volta", before changing its name in 1984.
6. 'Cameroon' was originally admitted as "Cameroun", before merging with Southern Cameroons in 1961.
7. The 'Democratic Republic of the Congo' was originally admitted as "Congo (Leopoldville)". It later changed its name to the "Democratic Republic of the Congo" in 1964, and then to "Zaire" in 1971, and back to its current name on 17 May 1997.
8. The 'Republic of the Congo' currently takes its seat under the name "Congo". It was originally admitted as "Congo (Brazzaville)".
9. 'Côte d'Ivoire' was originally admitted as "Ivory Coast", before changing its name in 1985.
10. 'Indonesia' temporarily withdrew from the UN on 20 January 1965 in response to the fact that Malaysia was elected as a non-permanent member of the Security Council. It announced its intention "to resume full cooperation with the United Nations and to resume participation in its activities" on 19 September 1966, and was invited to re-join the UN on 28 September 1966.
11. 'Iran' currently takes its seat under the name "Iran (Islamic Republic of)".
12. 'Laos' currently takes its seat under its official long-form name, the "Lao People's Democratic Republic".
13. 'Libya' currently takes its seat under its official long-form name, the "Libyan Arab Jamahiriya".
14. The 'Republic of Macedonia' currently takes its seat under the name "The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia", due to objections from Greece.
15. 'Malaysia' was originally admitted as the "Federation of Malaya". On 16 September 1963, its name was changed to "Malaysia" after the admission of Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak to the federation. Singapore became an independent state on 9 August 1965.
16. 'Micronesia' currently takes its seat under the name "Micronesia (Federated States of)".
17. 'Myanmar' was originally admitted as "Burma", before changing its name in 1989.
18. The 'Philippines' was originally admitted as the "Philippine Commonwealth", before being granted full independence in 1946.
19. 'Russia' currently takes its seat under its official long-form name, the "Russian Federation".
20. 'Samoa' was originally admitted as "Western Samoa", before changing its name in 1997.
21. 'South Africa' was originally admitted as the "Union of South Africa", before becoming a republic in 1961.
22. 'Sri Lanka' was originally admitted as "Ceylon", before changing its name in 1972.
23. 'Syria' currently takes its seat under its official long-form name, the "Syrian Arab Republic".
24. 'Tanzania' currently takes its seat under its official long-form name, the "United Republic of Tanzania".
25. 'Thailand' was originally admitted as "Siam", before changing its name in 1949.
26. 'Ukraine' was originally admitted as the "Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic", before declaring independence in 1991.
27. The 'United Kingdom' currently takes its seat under its official long-form name, the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland".
28. The 'United States' currently takes its seat under its official long-form name, the "United States of America".
29. 'Venezuela' currently takes its seat under the name "Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)".
30. 'Vietnam' currently takes its seat under the name "Viet Nam".
31. Transcript: Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General
32. King of the U.N.
33. Provisional Rules of Procedure of the Security Council
34. UN Head Criticized for Saying Taiwan Is 'Part of China'
35. China praises UN's rejection of Taiwan's application for membership
See also
★
Enlargement of the United Nations
★
League of Nations members
★
List of Permanent Representatives to the United Nations contains a list of all ambassadors from these member states.
External links
★
Official list of member states
★
Growth in United Nations membership, 1945-present
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