The United Nations General Assembly has granted observer status to international organizations, entities, and non-member states, to enable them to participate in the work of the United Nations General Assembly, though with limitations. The General Assembly determines the privileges it will grant to each observer, beyond those laid down in a 1986 Conference on treaties between states and international organizations. [1] Exceptionally, the European Union (EU) was in 2011 granted the right to speak in debates, to submit proposals and amendments, the right of reply, to raise points of order and to circulate documents, etc. As of May 2011 [update] , the EU is the only international organization to hold these enhanced rights, which has been likened to the rights of full membership, [2] short of the right to vote.
Observer status may be granted by a United Nations General Assembly resolution. The status of a permanent observer is based purely on practice of the General Assembly, and there are no provisions for it in the United Nations Charter. [3] The practice is to distinguish between state and non-state observers. Non-member states are members of one or more specialized agencies, and can apply for permanent observer state status. [3] Non-state observers are the international organizations and other entities.
The General Assembly may invite non-member entities to participate in the work of the United Nations without formal membership, and has done so on numerous occasions. Such participants are described as observers, some of which may be further classified as non-member state observers. Most former non-member observer states accepted observer status at a time when they had applied for membership but were unable to attain it, due to the actual or threatened veto by one or more of the permanent members of the Security Council. The grant of observer status is made by the General Assembly only; it is not subject to a Security Council veto.
In some circumstances a state may elect to become an observer rather than full member. For example, to preserve its neutrality while participating in its work, Switzerland chose to remain a permanent non-member state observer from 1948 until it became a member in 2002.
As of 2019 [update] , there are two permanent non-member observer states in the General Assembly of the United Nations: the Holy See and the State of Palestine. Both were described as "Non-Member States having received a standing invitation to participate as Observers in the sessions and the work of the General Assembly and maintaining Permanent Observer Missions at Headquarters". [4]
The Holy See uncontroversially obtained its non-member observer state status in 1964. The Holy See did not wish to join the United Nations as a member because "Membership in the organization would not seem to be consonant with the provisions of Article 24 of the Lateran Treaty, particularly as regards spiritual status and participation in possible use of force." [5] Since April 6, 1964, the Holy See has accepted permanent observer state status, which was regarded as a diplomatic courtesy, to enable the Holy See to participate in the UN's humanitarian activities and in the promotion of peace.
In 2012, Palestine's observer status was changed from "non-member observer entity" to "non-member observer state", which many called "symbolic". [6] The change followed an application by Palestine for full UN membership in 2011 [7] as part of the Palestine 194 campaign, to provide additional leverage to the Palestinians in their dealings with Israel. [8] The application had not been put to a UN Security Council vote. [9] With the change in status, the United Nations Secretariat held that Palestine was entitled to become a party to treaties for which the UN Secretary-General is the depositary. [10] On 17 December 2012, UN Chief of Protocol, Yeocheol Yoon, declared that "the designation of 'State of Palestine' shall be used by the Secretariat in all official United Nations documents." [11]
The seating in the General Assembly Hall is arranged with non-member observer states being seated immediately after UN member states, and before other observers. [12] On 10 September 2015, the General Assembly resolved to approve the raising at the UN of the flags of non-member observer states alongside those of the 193 UN member states. [13]
Non-Member State [4] | Date observer status was granted | Additional timeline and details |
---|---|---|
Holy See | 6 April 1964: granted permanent observer state status 1 July 2004: gained all the rights of full membership except voting rights, submission of resolution proposals without co-sponsoring, and putting forward candidates (A/RES/58/314) [12] | The sovereign entity with statehood over the territory of the Vatican City State. |
State of Palestine | 14 October 1974: the United Nations General Assembly recognized the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as the representative of the Palestinian people, and granted it the right to participate in the deliberations of the General Assembly on the question of Palestine in plenary meetings (A/RES/3210 (XXIX)) [14] | 28 October 1974: PLO recognized as "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people", by states of the seventh Arab summit (and later by over 100 states with which it holds diplomatic relations and by Israel). [23] [24] [25] [26] 22 November 1974: PLO recognized as competent on all matters concerning the question of Palestine by the UN General Assembly in addition to the right of the Palestinian people in Palestine to national independence and sovereignty. 15 November 1988: PLO unilaterally declared the State of Palestine. 4 May 1994: PLO established the Palestinian National Authority territorial administration as result of the Oslo Accords signed by the PLO itself, Israel, United States and Russia. 7 July 1998: PLO has been assigned seating in the General Assembly Hall immediately after non-member States and before the other observers. [18] [27] 23 September 2011: State of Palestine applies for UN membership [28] 17 December 2012: UN Chief of Protocol Yeocheol Yoon decides that "the designation of 'State of Palestine' shall be used by the Secretariat in all official United Nations documents." [29] |
Sixteen former non-member states were also granted observer status. [39] [40] Fourteen of those states eventually became members of the United Nations. The other two constitute a single special case. [Note 1]
Most of the former non-member observer states accepted this status at a time when they had applied for membership but were unable to attain it, due to the (actual or threatened) veto of one or more of the permanent members of the Security Council. The vetoes were later overcome either by changes in geopolitical circumstances, or by "package deals" under which the Security Council approved multiple new member states at the same time, as was done with a dozen countries in 1955 and with East and West Germany in 1973.[ citation needed ]
State | Granted | Became full member | Period |
---|---|---|---|
Austria | 1952 | 1955 | 3 years |
Bangladesh | 1973 | 1974 | 1 year |
Democratic People's Republic of Korea | 1973 | 1991 | 18 years |
Democratic Republic of Vietnam | 1975 | [Note 1] | —1 year |
Federal Republic of Germany | 1952 | 1973 | 21 years |
Finland | 1952 | 1955 | 3 years |
German Democratic Republic | 1972 | 1973 | 1 year |
Italy | 1952 | 1955 | 3 years |
Japan | 1952 | 1956 | 4 years |
Kuwait | 1962 | 1963 | 1 year |
Monaco | 1956 | 1993 | 37 years |
Republic of Korea | 1949 | 1991 | 42 years |
Republic of Vietnam | 1952 | [Note 1] | —24 years |
Spain | 1955 | 1955 | 0 years |
Switzerland | 1946 | 2002 | 56 years |
Vietnam | 1976 [Note 1] | 1977 | 1 year |
Many intergovernmental organizations and a few other entities (non-governmental organizations and others with various degrees of statehood or sovereignty), are invited to become observers at the General Assembly. Some of them maintain a permanent office in the United Nations headquarters in New York City, while others do not; however, this is the choice of the organization and does not imply differences in their status. [42]
While the EU is an observer, it is party to some 50 international UN agreements as the only non-state participant. It is a full participant on the Commission on Sustainable Development, the Forum on Forests and the Food and Agriculture Organization. It has also been a full participant at certain UN summits, such as the Rio and Kyoto summits on climate change, including hosting a summit. Furthermore, the EU delegation maintains close relations with the UN's aid bodies. [43] In 2011 the EU was granted enhanced powers in the General Assembly; the right to speak in debates, to submit proposals and amendments, the right of reply, to raise points of order and to circulate documents. These rights were also made open to other international organizations who requested them, [44] [2] if their members have given them the right to speak on their behalf. [45]
In the resolution adopted in May 2011 granting additional rights to the European Union the UNGA decided that similar arrangements may be adopted for any other regional organization that is allowed to speak on behalf of its member states. [45]
Organization or entity | Date observer status was granted | Entity type |
---|---|---|
European Union [note 1] | 11 October 1974 (A/RES/3208 (XXIX)): observer status 10 May 2011 (A/RES/65/276): [45] additional rights | The only observer that operates through a hybrid system of intergovernmentalism and supranationalism, giving it some state-like qualities. |
Those organizations that have permanent offices at the United Nations headquarters are marked with an asterisk (*).
All five entities are maintaining permanent offices at the United Nations headquarters.
Organization or entity | Date observer status was granted |
---|---|
International Committee of the Red Cross | 16 Oct 1990 (A/RES/45/6) [56] |
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies | 19 Oct 1994 (A/RES/49/2) [57] |
Inter-Parliamentary Union | 19 Nov 2002 (A/RES/57/32) [58] |
International Olympic Committee | 20 Oct 2009 (A/RES/64/3) [59] |
Sovereign Military Order of Malta | 24 Aug 1994 (A/RES/48/265) [60] |
Organization or entity or nation | Date observer status was granted | Representing country |
---|---|---|
Republic of China (Taiwan) | 1981~to date | Republic of China |
Kosovo | 2015~to date | Republic Of Kosovo |
The Palestine Liberation Organization is a Palestinian nationalist coalition that is internationally recognized as the official representative of the Palestinian people in both the Palestinian territories and the diaspora. It is currently represented by the Palestinian Authority based in the West Bank city of Al-Bireh.
The member states of the United Nations comprise 193 sovereign states. The United Nations (UN) is the world's largest intergovernmental organization. All members have equal representation in the UN General Assembly.
The history of the State of Palestine describes the creation and evolution of the State of Palestine in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. During the British mandate period, numerous plans of partition of Palestine were proposed but without the agreement of all parties. In 1947, the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine was voted for. The leaders of the Jewish Agency for Palestine accepted parts of the plan, while Arab leaders refused it. This triggered the 1947–1949 Palestine war and led, in 1948, to the establishment of the state of Israel on a part of Mandate Palestine as the Mandate came to an end.
The occupied Palestinian territories, also referred to as the Occupied Palestinian Territory and the Palestinian territories, consist of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip—two regions of the former British Mandate for Palestine that have been occupied by Israel since the Six-Day War of 1967. These territories make up the State of Palestine, which was self-declared by the Palestine Liberation Organization in 1988 and is recognized by 146 out of 193 UN member states.
Issues relating to the State of Israel and aspects of the Arab–Israeli conflict, and more recently the Iran–Israel conflict, occupy repeated annual debate times, resolutions and resources at the United Nations. Since its founding in 1948, the United Nations Security Council, has adopted 79 resolutions directly related to the Arab–Israeli conflict as of January 2010.
The United Nations Security Council veto power is the power of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council to veto any decision other than a "procedural" decision.
Observer status is a privilege granted by some organizations to non-members to give them an ability to participate in the organization's activities. Observer status is often granted by intergovernmental organizations (IGO) to non-member parties and international nongovernmental organizations (INGO) that have an interest in the IGO's activities. Observers generally have a limited ability to participate in the IGO, lacking the ability to vote or propose resolutions.
The politics of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) take place within the framework of a semi-presidential multi-party republic, with a legislative council, an executive president, and a prime minister leading the cabinet.
Issues relating to the State of Palestine and aspects of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict occupy continuous debates, resolutions, and resources at the United Nations. Since its founding in 1948, the United Nations Security Council, as of January 2010, has adopted 79 resolutions directly related to the Arab–Israeli conflict.
The Holy See is not a member of the United Nations but was granted permanent observer state status on 6 April 1964. In that capacity, it has the right to attend all sessions of the United Nations General Assembly, the United Nations Security Council, and the United Nations Economic and Social Council to observe their work. Accordingly, the Holy See has established permanent observer missions in New York and in Geneva and has been able to influence the decisions and recommendations of the United Nations.
The European Union (EU) has permanent observer status at the United Nations (UN) since 1974, and gained enhanced participation rights in 2011. The EU itself does not have voting rights but it is represented alongside its 27 members, one of which, France, is a permanent member of the Security Council.
Relations between the European Union and the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) were established in 1975 as part of the Euro-Arab Dialogue. The EU is a member of the Quartet and is the single largest donor of foreign aid to the Palestinian Authority.
Palestine 194 is an ongoing diplomatic campaign by the Palestinian National Authority to gain membership in the United Nations for the State of Palestine. The name of the campaign is a reference to Palestine becoming the 194th member of the UN. The UN campaign is part of a strategy to gain international recognition of the State of Palestine, based on the borders prior to the Six-Day War, with East Jerusalem as its capital. The initiative developed during a two-year impasse in negotiations with Israel that followed the latter's refusal to freeze its settlement activities in the West Bank. The campaign was reported in the media as early as late 2009, and gained prominence during the leadup to the 66th Session of the General Assembly in September 2011. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas submitted the application to the Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on 23 September 2011, which the Security Council has yet to vote on.
The United Nations General Assembly Resolution 43/177 of 15 December 1988 was a resolution in which the United Nations General Assembly acknowledged the proclamation of the State of Palestine and the use of the designation "Palestine", referring to the PLO in the UN. Further, the Assembly affirmed the need for sovereignty by the Palestinian people over their territory occupied in 1967 by Israel. The resolution is titled "43/177. Question of Palestine".
United Nations General Assembly resolution 67/19 was a resolution accepting Palestine as a non-member observer state in the United Nations General Assembly. It was adopted by the sixty-seventh session of the United Nations General Assembly on 29 November 2012, the date of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People and the 65th anniversary of the adoption by the General Assembly of resolution 181(II) on the Future Government of Palestine. The draft resolution was proposed by Palestine's representative at the United Nations. It, however, maintains the status of the Palestinian Liberation Organization as the representative of the Palestinian people within the United Nations system. Though strongly contested by the United States and the government of Israel, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert expressed support for the measure. The motion was seen as largely symbolic, though it could allow Palestine to start proceedings at the International Criminal Court against Israel. Its timing, following a year in which Palestine obtained membership of UNESCO and the UN Security Council was unable "to make a unanimous recommendation" on their application for full UN membership, and coming several days after the completion of Operation Pillar of Defense, was also noted. The new status equates Palestine with that of the Holy See within the United Nations system and implicitly recognises Palestinian sovereignty.
The foreign relations of the State of Palestine have been conducted since the establishment of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in 1964. Since the Oslo Accords, it seeks to obtain universal recognition for the State of Palestine on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. As of 21 June 2024, 146 of the 193 United Nations (UN) member states officially recognize the State of Palestine.
The Palestinian Declaration of Independence formally established the State of Palestine, and was written by Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish and proclaimed by Yasser Arafat on 15 November 1988 in Algiers, Algeria. It had previously been adopted by the Palestinian National Council (PNC), the legislative body of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), by a vote of 253 in favour, 46 against, and 10 abstaining. It was read at the closing session of the 19th PNC to a standing ovation. Upon completing the reading of the declaration, Arafat, as Chairman of the PLO, assumed the title of President of Palestine. In April 1989, the PLO Central Council elected Arafat as the first President of the State of Palestine.
As of June 2024, the State of Palestine is recognized as a sovereign state by 146 of the 193 member states of the United Nations, or just over 75% of all UN members. It has been a non-member observer state of the United Nations General Assembly since November 2012. This limited status is largely due to the fact that the United States, a permanent member of the UN Security Council with veto power, has consistently used its veto or threatened to do so to block Palestine's full UN membership.
The Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations is the leader of the Palestinian delegation to the United Nations. The position is more formally known as the "Permanent Observer Mission of the State of Palestine to the United Nations;" however, both the title of Ambassador and "Permanent Observer" is used. The Permanent Observer, currently Riyad Mansour, is charged with representing the State of Palestine to the United Nations.
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) declared the establishment of the State of Palestine on November 15, 1988. As of June 2024, the State of Palestine is recognized as a sovereign state by 145 of the 193 member states of the United Nations. It is a non-member observer state at the United Nations since November 2012. This limited status is largely due to the United States, a permanent member of the Security Council with veto power, has consistently used its veto or threatened to do so to block Palestine’s full membership to UN. The existence of a state of Palestine is recognized by the states that have established bilateral diplomatic relations with it. There is a wide range of views on the legal status of the State of Palestine, both among international states and legal scholars.
Hence, instruments received from the Taiwan Province of China will not be accepted by the Secretary-General in his capacity as depositary.