The Efficacy of Article 2 (4): Use of Military Force

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Recommended: Role of the United Nations

The Charter of the United Nations (UN) is the foundational treaty document enacted on October 24, 1945 after ratification by the five permanent members of the Security Council and with the ratification of the majority of signatories. The UN is an organization of independent states formed in 1945 to promote international peace and security and, due to its unique international character and the powers vested in its founding Charter, it can take action on a wide range of issues through the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council and other bodies and committees.

Article 2(4) is a section of the UN Charter that specifically states that: all member states shall refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state or in any manner inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nations. Section two is a specification of the broad scope of the UN Charter which, in general terms describes the purpose of the UN to maintain international peace and security and to take necessary actions to prevent and remove threats and to act in the suppression of aggression and breaches of peace.

However, there have been many instances since the time of ratification of the charter which have borne witness to the intervention of states into the affairs of others which have called into question the power of the United Nations and the effectiveness of Article 2(4). This essay will critically analyses the efficacy of Article 2(4) and instances of interventions into the affairs of states by analyzing three recent examples. Secondly it will analyze other key factors that may contribute to, or impede against the efficacy of the Article 2(4).

Military force and violent p...

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Wars of the World, 'Arab-Israeli War 1967'. OnWar.Com, Armed Conflict Events Data. Retrieved 10 April 2011< http://www.onwar.com/aced/data/9999/6day1967.htm>

Institute for Historical Review, 'Historical Myth Justifies Golan Heights Occupation'. The Journal of Historical Review, Sep-DEC 1999. Vol. 18, No. 5-6. p. 36. Retreived 10 April 2011< http://www.ihr.org/jhr/v18/v18n5p36_Golan.html>

Zajmi. F, 'Refighting Kosovo: A Kosovar's perspective'. Central Europe Review. July 2000. Retrieved 20 April 2011< http://www.ce-review.org/00/26/zajmi26.html>

Zalman. A, 'Iraq War - Bush Iraq Was Justification Timeline'. About.Com. Retrieved 11 April 2011< http://terrorism.about.com/od/wariniraq/a/IraqWaronTerror.htm>

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