MS MUN: UN 101

Founded at the end of World War II in 1945, the United Nations was created to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations on equal terms, and encourage international cooperation in solving intractable human problems.

This popular text for courses on international organizations and international relations provides a comprehensive yet accessible introduction to the United Nations, exploring the historical, institutional, and theoretical foundations of the UN as well as the political processes and issues facing the organization today.

The United Nations has been called everything from "the best hope of mankind" to "irrelevant" and "obsolete." With this much-needed introduction to the UN, Jussi Hanhimaki engages the current debate over the organizations effectiveness as he provides a clear understanding of how it was originally conceived, how it has come to its present form, and how it must confront new challenges in a rapidly changing world.