A United Nations resolution is a formal expression of the opinion or will of a UN body. While any of the UN bodies can issue resolutions, the Security Council and the General Assembly are the two main sources of them. A resolution must follow a strict format, and the process of writing and approving them is a complex one. Delegates will navigate an abbreviated version of this collaborative process in their committee sessions.
The Security Council is the principal crisis-management body of the United Nations. Its five permanent members and ten elected members meet regularly to assess threats to international peace and security, such as civil wars, natural disasters, arms proliferation, and terrorism. The Council’s decisions are binding on all member states unless they specifically waive them. Article 25 of the UN Charter stipulates that member states are bound to “carry out the decisions of the Security Council”.
General Assembly resolutions are non-binding unless they explicitly state that they are, and are meant to apply only to the specific case of the text in question. However, the General Assembly has made many resolutions that are binding in scope. For example, resolution 194 of 1947 (on the partition of Palestine) stipulates that refugees wishing to return to their homes should be permitted to do so “at the earliest practicable date,” and that compensation should be paid for property lost or destroyed.
In the past, the Security Council has also used its authority to create multinational peacekeeping forces and to authorize the use of force when necessary to protect civilians in conflict zones. These operations have often been criticized for being politicized, inefficient and sometimes dangerously underfunded.
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