The United Nations came into existence as a result of the worst war known to man, World War II. Around 85 million people died during the course of World War II. That is nearly 3% of the 1940 world population. The creation of the United Nations was an American-led effort to replace the failed League of Nations. Even the name, United Nations, was first suggested by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1942. Franklin D. Roosevelt and the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, along with several other major combat nations agreed there was a need for a world organization to keep peace in future years. These founders of the United Nations had a clear vision of its roles as a facilitator of cooperative action among sovereign nations to prevent more global conflict. In 1945, 50 nations met in San Francisco, completing the Charter of the United Nations. The preamble to the United Nations Charter states, We the peoples of the United Nations determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetimes has brought sorrow to mankind, reinvigorates the ideals of cooperation and peace. The founders of the United Nations had more hopes than to solely prevent war. The United Nations was meant to develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determina
tion, as well as achieving international cooperation in solving international problems. These problems could be economic, social, cultural, and humanitarian. To accommodate all these ideals the United Nations must be more than one group. The most powerful organization in the United Nations is the Security Council. The Security Council is a permanent council in the United Nations with the primary goal of maintaining peace and security. Consequently, the Security Council has the power to deploy troops from United Nations member countries, as well as place economic penalties on countries. The United Nations also include well known organizations such as the World Trade Organization and North Atlantic Treaty Organization, as well as small organizations such as the International Seed Testing Association and International Bureau of Weights and Measures. The extensive list of organizations and groups contributing to the idea of a united group of sovereign nations shows the support placed behind the United Nations. The United Nations had an impact on history, and the world would be very different today without it, however they didnt succeed in their goals. Today we have seen the United Nations fail in their efforts to prevent the scourge of war, achieve friendly relations, and become the center for harmonizing the actions of nations.