The World After WW2

Tuesday, May 22 2012, 2:19 PM

Emergence of 2 Power Blocs
Emergence of 3rd World
NAM
Membership Conditions
1. They must formulate an independent foreign policy aimed at establishing mutual cooperation among
states.
2. They should support independence and right to self determination.
3. They should not be a member of any military alliance created by big powers out of their conflict.
4. They should not have any bilateral or regional alliance created out of the conflict of big powers.
5. They should not host foreign bases created out of the conflict of big powers.
UNO & Global Disputes
Successes
West New Guinea, 1946
1. UN brokered an independence deal for Indonesia from Dutch in 1946. However, the fate of this land
was left undecided as Dutch refused to vacate it.
2. In 1961, fighting broke out and in 1962, UN played a vital role in concluding a peace that it should
become a part of Indonesia slowly.
The Korean War, 1950-53
1. When N Korea invaded S Korea, UN Security Council passed a resolution condemning it and calling
on its members to help S Korea.
2. However, such a resolution was only possible due to absence of USSR which had been boycotting
security council meetings over the non recognition of China.
The Suez Crisis, 1956
1. When Nasser nationalized Suez, England, France and Israel invaded her.
2. Though a resolution in security council was vetoed by England and France, the general assembly
passed a resolution condemning the invasion by an overwhelming majority. In view of Soviet pressure
and international opinion, England, France and Israel agreed to back down.
3. A UN force was sent in to maintain peace on the Egyptian Israeli border.
The Gulf War, 1991
1. When Iraq attacked Kuwait, UN Security Council warned him to withdraw his troops or face the
consequences. When it refused to hear, a UN force was sent in and Kuwait was liberated.
Cambodia
1. In 1975, the Pol Pot led Khmer Rouge regime exterminated one-third of the country's population
within 3 years. In 1979, Vietnamese troops moved in and installed a new government.

2. US pressure led to UN condemning the Vietnamese action. But it was Cold War.
3. When the Cold War ended, UN intervened successfully to secure withdrawal of Vietnamese troops
and holding of a general election in the country in 1993.
The Mozambique Crisis, 1990-94
1. After winning independence in 1975, Mozambique was torn in a civil war. By 1990s, both sides were
exhausted and attempted to sign a peace. But violations of the peace continued.
2. In such a situation, UN forces moved in, disarmed both rivals and held free elections in 1994.
Failures
The Palestine Issue, 1947
1. The dispute between Jews and Arabs was brought to UNO in 1947. The UN after conducting
investigations decided to divide Palestine and setup a Jewish state of Israel. But this decision was not
accepted by the Arab World and the crisis continues till date.
The Hungarian Crisis, 1956
1. When the Hungarian tried to assert their independence, Soviet troops moved in. The security council
resolution was vetoed by USSR but general assembly passed a resolution condemning the attack with
an overwhelming majority. But Soviet Union refused to listen and UN couldn't do anything.
The Cyprus Crisis, 1963-74
1. A civil war broke out between Greeks (~80% of the population) and the Turks. A UN force was sent
and it remained stationed there till 1974.
2. In 1974, the Greeks tried to unite with Greece. An invading Turkish force came to help the Turks and
expelled all the Greeks. UN failed to do anything.
The Chezchoslovakia Crisis, 1968
1. The Warsaw Pact troops moved in when Chezchoslovakia tried to assert independence. The security
council motion was vetoed by USSR and it simply ignored the international will.
Somalia, 1991-1995
1. A civil war broke out in 1991. In 1992, UN troops dominated by US moved in and tried to disarm the
fighting groups. But the fighting groups refused to disarm and began to attack UN forces. Casualties
began to grow and US withdrew its troops in 1994. Remaining UN troops were withdrawn in 1995
and the Somalian warlords were left on their own to fight it out.