United Nations

Staff in masks wearing PPE prepare food aid rations to be henceforth delivered to refugee family homes rather than distributed at a UN a center, in Gaza City.

National Security This Week at the United Nations (Nov 6-Nov 13)

U.N. congratulates President-Elect Biden and Vice President-Elect Harris Top United Nations (U.N.) officials sent their congratulations to President-Elect Joe Biden and Vice President-Elect…

Nov. 13, 2020 Tim Hirschel-Burns

A picture taken on October 16, 2020 shows a destroyed tank in the city of Jabrayil, where Azeri forces regained control during the fighting over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict and the Exercise of “Self-Defense” to Recover Occupied Land

The fighting raised a fundamental but surprisingly overlooked question of international law on the use of force.

Nov. 10, 2020 Tom Ruys and Felipe Rodríguez Silvestre

The International Criminal Court's prosecutor Fatou Bensouda gives a press conference in Sudan's capital Khartoum on October 20, 2020, at the conclusion of her five-day visit to the country.

National Security This Week at the United Nations (Oct 30-Nov 6)

“Unwavering Support” for ICC Amid U.S. Sanctions 72 countries at the U.N. on Monday offered their “unwavering support” for the International Criminal Court…

Nov. 6, 2020 Lyes Jalali

Suzan Aref, founder and director of Women Empowerment Organization in Iraq discusses a national report on implementation of the country’s first national action plan on women, peace and security, pursuant to U.N. Security Council Resolution 1325, at the United Nations in January 2019.

UN Resolution on Women, Peace, and Security Stumbles in Iraq When It’s Needed Most

Civil society fights hard to be heard above the din of war, displacement, political dysfunction and the ebbs and flows of international aid.

Oct. 31, 2020 Viola Gienger

Veronika Tsepkalo, the wife of opposition figure Valery Tsepkalo, who was barred from running for presidency, presidential candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya and Maria Kolesnikova, Viktor Babaryko's campaign chief, pose during a press conference in Minsk on July 17, 2020.

The Women, Peace and Security Agenda at 20: Setbacks, Progress, and the Way Forward

Two decades after the landmark UN resolution, the rise of authoritarianism and extreme rightist ideologies have generated backlash against gender equality and the idea of involving…

Oct. 30, 2020 Chantal de Jonge Oudraat and Kathleen Kuehnast

Secretary-General António Guterres briefs reporters on the signing of a ceasefire agreement by the Libyan parties in Geneva under the auspices of the United Nations.

National Security This Week at the United Nations (October 23-30)

Treaty on Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons gains 50th signatory; schools face terror attacks in multiple countries; COVID-19 infections interrupt UN meetings; UN expresses concern…

Oct. 30, 2020 Tim Hirschel-Burns

The final day of negotiations on the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) at the United Nations in New York in July 2017.

A Turning Point in the Struggle Against the Bomb: The Nuclear Ban Treaty Ready to Go Into Effect

The US and other major nuclear powers tried to slow the momentum, but the treaty has already changed the conversation.

Oct. 27, 2020 Daryl G. Kimball

Argentinean Activist Chiarra Sacchi speaks during a press conference where 16 children from across the world, present their official human rights complaint on the climate crisis to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child at the UNICEF Building on September 23, 2019 in New York City.

Intergenerational Co-Leadership for Global Governance Innovation

This generation is ready to move beyond street protests and play an active role in politics and governance. Thinking about youth only as the future has hindered us from recognizing…

Oct. 24, 2020 Aya Chebbi

Secretary-General António Guterres and Volkan Bozkir, President of the seventy-fifth session of the United Nations General Assembly, attends the screening of a pre-recorded concert. 22 October 2020. New York, United States of America.

National Security at the United Nations This Week (Oct. 16 – 23)

UNSMIL hails ceasefire in Libya On Friday, the parties to the nine-year Libyan war agreed to a ceasefire in Geneva. The head of the U.N. Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) Stephanie…

Oct. 23, 2020 Lyes Jalali

A delegate wears her mask as she casts her vote during the General Assembly election of members to the Human Rights Council. The 16th plenary meeting October 13, 2020

National Security at the United Nations This Week (Oct. 9 – 16)

Russia and China elected to UN Human Rights Council; Saudi Arabia loses out The United Nations (U.N.) Human Rights Council held secret ballot elections to fill 15 vacant seats…

Oct. 16, 2020 Tim Hirschel-Burns

Pompeo on a computer screen giving a press conference.

Estrangement Over Engagement: How the Trump Administration is Bucking Bipartisan Human Rights Diplomacy at the UN

The practice of the Trump administration turning its back on rights at the United Nations goes well beyond the Human Rights Council.

Oct. 14, 2020 Ryan Kaminski and Grace Anderson

Issa Konfourou, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Mali to the United Nations, addresses the Security Council meeting on the situation in Mali.

National Security at the United Nations This Week (Oct. 2 – 9)

WFP wins the Nobel Peace Prize; new PM appointed in Mali; conflict continues in Nagorno-Karabakh; and countries split on China's human rights record.

Oct. 9, 2020 Tim Hirschel-Burns