How the United Nations was Born from WWII
The Allies met in several conferences from 1941 to 1945 to discuss how to guarantee a more peaceful and cooperative world once the Second World War (1939-45) was concluded. To foster global cooperation, facilitate free trade, and give aid to war-ravaged and developing countries, the United Nations was formed along with other new international bodies such as the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and International Court of Justice. This terrible global conflict had, it was hoped, at least led to a solution for lasting peace.
The Road to International Cooperation
The first truly global political body was the League of Nations, born from the Treaty of Versailles, which had formally concluded the First World War (1914-18). In a project driven by the US President Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924), the League was founded in January 1920 to promote world peace and welfare. It provided a forum, at its headquarters in Geneva, where 44 countries promised to resolve international disputes peacefully. Any state that attacked another would be subjected to the collective action of all the other members, first in the form of economic sanctions, and if necessary, military action. This idea was known as 'collective security.' Other aims included the fostering of international cooperation in economics and social matters, particularly in the fields of health and communications.
Unfortunately, the League of Nations suffered from several inherent weaknesses. Perhaps the most significant was the absence of the United States, a decision taken because isolationists dominated post-war US politics. The League also failed to respond adequately to several direct challenges, notably Japan's occupation of Manchuria in China in 1931 and Italy's invasion of Abyssinia (modern Ethiopia) in 1935. The consequence of the League's weaknesses was that individual members began to concentrate not on collective security but on making their own treaties and the use of military force to achieve foreign policy objectives. By 1939, the League had been marginalised regarding world affairs, but the essential idea would be revived, even while the world was fully occupied with the largest conflict ever experienced.
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⇒ How the United Nations was Born from WWII
