Location, Location…Mediation: The United Nations’ Headquarters

By James Kang, New York Politics

The United Nations (UN) is an international organization that concerns itself with five major objectives. These are the maintenance of international peace and security, the protection of human rights, humanitarian aid, sustainable development and climate action, and the upholding of international law (United Nations 2024). There are four main UN offices, one of them in New York. However, the role of the New York location isn’t limited to being one of the four offices; it is also the headquarters of the UN. What political and historical contexts caused the UN to establish their headquarters in New York? 

Historical Background

World War II was  one of the major reasons the United Nations was established. By June 1941, the Axis Powers dominated most of Europe, causing representatives from various Allied Powers to meet in London and sign the Declaration of St. James Palace. This declaration, which was signed on June 12, 1941, was a pledge to “continue the struggle against German or Italian oppression until victory is won; and [to] mutually assist each other in this struggle to the utmost of [the Allies’] respective capacities” (United Nations 2024). However, in August 1941, the Axis Powers still had an advantage over the Allies, especially because the United States had yet to enter the war.

Soon after, US President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchil established the Atlantic Charter, a joint declaration addressing “certain common principles in the national policies of their respective countries on which they based their hopes for a better future for the world” (United Nations 2024). This charter became the foundation for another document, the Declaration by United Nations. Representatives from twenty-two other nations added their signatures, pledging to accept the Atlantic Charter and abstain from negotiating a separate peace with any member of the Axis Powers. The document marks the first official use of the term “United Nations,” which the Allied Powers used to refer to their alliance. By 1943, the Allied nations were committed to establishing a world in which “men in all lands may live out their lives in freedom from fear and want” (United Nations 2024). In pursuit of this objective,  representatives from the United Kingdom, the United States, China, and the USSR met in Moscow in October 1943. On October 30, the representatives signed the Moscow Declaration, which addressed “the necessity of establishing at the earliest practicable date a general international organization . . . for the maintenance of international peace and security” (United Nations 2024).

By 1944, with the war coming to a close, representatives from the same four countries met at Dumbarton Oaks, a private mansion in Washington, D.C. The four nations submitted a proposal for the structure of the new organization, which stated that it would consist of four principal bodies. (United Nations 2024) These bodies would include a general assembly composed of all  member states, a security council of eleven members, an International Court of Justice, and a United Nations secretariat. These proposals were voted on by the Allied countries at the Yalta Conference, during which it was decided that a UN conference would be held in San Francisco on April 25, 1945. (United Nations 2024)

Thus, there was the San Francisco Conference in 1945, more commonly known as the United Nations Conference on International Organization (UNCIO). (United Nations 2024) Delegates from fifty countries gathered in San Francisco, representing over eighty percent of the world’s population. The conference lasted for two months, from April to June 1945. Among its biggest challenges was addressing the authority which the permanent members of the Security Council held over  smaller member states. However, the former, consisting of the United States, the United Kingdom, the USSR, France, and China, insisted that they were the most responsible for maintaining world peace. Delegates unanimously passed and signed the UN Charter on the last official day of the conference. (United Nations 2024)

The signing of the charter did not mean that the United Nations would immediately be established. Regardless of its passage by the permanent members, the document had to be approved by each country’s respective government. By October 24, 1945, this condition was fulfilled, and the United Nations officially came into existence in the wake of the Axis’ surrender and the dropping of the atomic bombs on Japan. (United Nations 2024) After four years of planning, an international organization, which had the objective of ending wars and promoting the concepts of peace, justice, and the wellbeing of all humankind, was designed and realized. Still, the United Nations had yet to decide on a location for its headquarters, where its main bodies would carry out their work (United Nations 2024).

Headquarters in New York City

On December 10, 1945, the United States Congress unanimously decided to invite the United Nations to establish its permanent headquarters in the country. (United Nations 2024) As a result, the General Assembly considered a proposal to locate the United Nations headquarters in New York City during their first session, which was held in London.

During this conference, the UN site committee considered other possible locations, such as Philadelphia, Boston, San Francisco, and even areas north of New York City; Manhattan wasn’t an obvious option. However, the General Assembly eventually decided on accepting the offer after John D. Rockefeller, Jr. donated $8.5 million on December 14, 1946. (United Nations 2024) New York City completed this offer with additional gifts of property. The specific area chosen was home to slaughterhouses and other light industry, along with a railroad barge landing. 

Once the location of headquarters was agreed upon, the next major task was to design and construct the headquarters building. Delegates started a joint project of selecting leading architects from all over the world, with Wallace K. Harrison of the United States being appointed as the chief architect, or Director of Planning. (United Nations 2024) There was a board of design consultants selected to assist him, consisting of ten architects nominated by each government. Construction completed in 1952, and the United States became bound by an agreement as the host country; no American federal, state, or local officer could enter the UN Headquarters building unless consent was given by the Secretary-General. Moreover, the Headquarters was protected from use as a refuge for people attempting to avoid arrest under any US law (United Nations 2024).

Mediation

Despite being considered international territory, the New York location does have an impact on the role and responsibilities of the UN. To illustrate, New York City is also the host of the Permanent Missions and Observers to the UN, which helps establish permanent missions in coordination with the UN’s work and provides relevant documentation for non-member states. (NYC Mayor’s Office of International Affairs 2024) In other words, the heavy presence of the missions and observers elevates New York’s status as a global hub. After all, the UN leads the quest for global mediation development, especially in the economic, social, and cultural spheres. 

Since one of the UN offices is located in NYC, both the UN and NYC recognize that they share commitments to certain forms of mediation. As a result, the NYC Mayor’s Office for International Affairs established the digital campaign “We are the City of United Nations” in 2016 to commemorate the unique relationship between the UN and NYC (NYC Mayor’s Office of International Affairs 2024).

For instance, one of the partnerships between the UN and NYC highlights the protection of the rights of people around the world. The program enforces policies that empower all people, including the LGBT community. Both the UN, through its UN LGBT Core Group, and NYC highlight that people should live free from harassment and violence, “including the right for all New Yorkers to use the bathroom consistent with their gender identity.” (NYC Mayor’s Office of International Affairs 2024) Another example was when NYC signed an agreement with the UN to work together to improve the safety and security of women and girls, making them the first US city to join the Safe Cities Global Initiative. Another historic partnership between the UN and NYC involves the Paris Agreement, with governments around the world committing to limit global carbon emissions. In NYC, the UN plans to initiate a bold plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in 2050  by eighty percent from  2005, making NYC the most sustainable big city in the world. (NYC Mayor’s Office of International Affairs 2024)Overall, many initiatives and policies are established with the UN-NYC partnership. Thus, the UN tests most of their mediation efforts in NYC to determine if they are feasible for international contexts.

However, most of the important mediation efforts by the UN are not impacted by the headquarters’ location. This includes the mediation of “inter- and intra-State conflicts at all stages: before they escalate into armed conflict, after the outbreak of violence, and during implementation of peace agreements.” (United Nations 2024)

At the request of parties involved in a dispute, the Secretary-General and his representatives carry out mediation efforts. Established in 1992, the Department of Political Affairs (DPA) assisted the work of the Secretary-General, but later reconstructed itself into the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (DPPA) by joining forces with the Peacebuilding Support Unit (PBSO) in 2019. With the establishment of the DPPA, the United Nations acknowledged that “successful conflict mediation requires an adequate support system to provide envoys with the proper staff assistance and advice, and to ensure that talks have the needed logistical and financial resources” (United Nations 2024). The DPPA tends to lead United Nations mediation efforts, and has collaborated with other partner organizations in those  efforts. Likewise, the DPPA’s Mediation Support Unit (MSU) works closely with the DPPA’s regional divisions in order to coordinate mediation efforts. MSU “provides advisory, financial, and logistical support to peace processes; works to strengthen the mediation capacity of regional and sub-regional organizations; and serves as a repository of meditation knowledge, policy and guidance, lessons learned and best practices” (United Nations 2024).

The DPPA has control over the United Nations Standby Team of Mediation Experts, created in 2008, providing a last-resort effort for mediation. These team members have proved to be effective in providing support in negotiations, utilizing their expertise to resolve issues such as power-sharing, natural resources, and conflict. The Standby Team of Mediation Experts is expected to have flexibility given that its members are deployed on short notice. Since 2020, the team has expanded to practice virtual mediation and to meet the evolving needs of mediation actors. This includes the development of an online mediation tool known as UN Peacemaker. This tool allows individuals the opportunity to access an extensive database of approximately 800 peace agreements and materials on the UN’s mediation services. (United Nations 2024)

Lastly, the DPPA provides support for the High-Level Advisory Board (HLAB) on Mediation, which was created by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in September 2017. There are eighteen members in HLAB, consisting of “current and former global leaders, senior officials, and renowned experts [who can] back specific mediation efforts around the world with their unparalleled range of experience, skills, knowledge, and contracts” (United Nations 2024). The creation of the DPPA and other subsequent programs demonstrates the United Nations’ vision for effective mediation.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the UN headquarters was established upon the importance of having a reliable anchor for peacekeeping operations, and the United States promised to provide this foundation. In addition, the role of NYC is to provide the UN with opportunities to explore what mediation policies are effective to incorporate on an international level.

References

“History of the United Nations.” United Nations. https://www.un.org/en/about-us/history-of-the-un (November 5, 2024a). 

History of United Nations Headquarters. https://www.un.org/sites/un2.un.org/files/headquarters.pdf (November 5, 2024). 

“The New Yorkness of the UN.” The New Yorkness of the UN – Mayor’s Office of International Affairs. https://www.nyc.gov/site/international/programs/the-new-yorkness-of-the-un.page (November 4, 2024). 

NYC. “We are the city of United Nations,” NYC: Mayor’s Office for International Affairs. https://cityofunitednations.tumblr.com/  (November 4, 2024). 

“Peace, Dignity and Equality on a Healthy Planet.” United Nations. https://www.un.org/en/ (November 4, 2024b).