One voice or different choice? Vote defection of European Union member states in the United Nations General Assembly

2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 652-673 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas Burmester ◽  
Michael Jankowski
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Union Member ◽  
General Assembly ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Member States ◽  
United Nations General ◽  
United Nations General Assembly ◽  
The United Nations ◽  
European Union Member States

Existing research suggests that European Union member states are increasingly able to act in concert in the United Nations General Assembly. Based on several hundred co-ordination meetings per year, the European Union ‘speaks with one voice’ on most of the resolutions voted upon in the United Nations General Assembly. However, little is known about instances where the European Union member states do not vote coherently. Three questions remain unanswered. First, what factors determine deviating voting behaviour of European Union member states? Second, who are the most frequent defectors from the European Union’s majority position? Third, which voting blocs within the European Union can be identified? The article answers these questions in a quantitative design by controlling for domestic factors, issues of resolutions and the position of the United States. The results suggest that domestic factors determine deviating voting behaviour far less than agenda-related issues and the position of the United States.

In quest of a single European Union voice in the United Nations General Assembly: The politics of Resolution 65/276

2017 ◽  
Vol 52 (4) ◽  
pp. 451-468 ◽  
Author(s):  
Spyros Blavoukos ◽  
Dimitris Bourantonis ◽  
Ioannis Galariotis
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Significant Degree ◽  
General Assembly ◽  
The European Union ◽  
United Nations General ◽  
United Nations General Assembly ◽  
The United Nations ◽  
The Eu

In May 2011, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) passed Resolution 65/276 that enhances the European Union (EU) institutional mode of representation in the UNGA and other multilateral fora operating under its auspices. This followed an earlier, failed attempt that caused much embarrassment and political turmoil in the EU. The article examines the politics of this resolution, tracing its background logic, its origins and the political interactions in the UN that eventually led to its almost consensual embracement. It accounts for the failure in the first stage of the negotiations and how the EU responded to it, adjusting its bargaining strategy accordingly. This case study contributes to the better understanding of the links between intra-EU coherence and EU effectiveness as an international actor. We posit that there is one additional dimension of EU coherence not fully captured in the relevant literature. We distinguish between genuine coherence and generated coherence. The former entails homogeneity, or at least a significant degree of a priori convergence among EU member-states. The latter refers to EU positions that have emerged after hard and protracted intra-EU negotiations. The two types differ in the degree of flexibility bestowed on the EU in international negotiations.

The institutional design of the United Nations General Assembly: an effective equalizer?

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diana Panke
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
International Organizations ◽  
Institutional Design ◽  
General Assembly ◽  
Final Decision ◽  
Policy Cycle ◽  
Member States ◽  
United Nations General ◽  
United Nations General Assembly ◽  
The United Nations

Most international organizations are based on the principle of equality of states. Their institutional design grants all member states the same formal rights. Although formally equal, states differ immensely concerning their power capacities and size. Can institutional designs of international organizations mitigate real-world power- and size-related differences between member states, and if so, to which extent? To provide an answer, this article focuses on the United Nations General Assembly, which combines an equalizing institutional design with a large very heterogeneous membership. It shows that the strength of the equalizing effect varies across stages of the policy cycle. It is the weakest in the negotiation stage and the strongest in the final decision-making stage, while institutional design of international organizations has a de facto equalizing effect of medium strength in the agenda setting stage. Thus, while power and capacity differences matter, larger powerful states are not systematically better off throughout the entire policy cycle.

Regional Power Revisited: How to Explain Differences in Coherency and Success of Regional Organizations in the United Nations General Assembly

2013 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 265-291 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diana Panke
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
General Assembly ◽  
Regional Power ◽  
Regional Organizations ◽  
Member States ◽  
Mixed Methods Approach ◽  
United Nations General ◽  
Argumentative Strategies ◽  
United Nations General Assembly ◽  
The United Nations

Abstract The United Nations General Assembly is the International Organization (IO) with the broadest worldwide membership. While regional organizations are not members themselves, they can and often do become active through their own member states. This article addresses two questions: Do regional organizations differ in their ability to speak with one voice in IOs and, if so, why? Are some regional organizations more successful than others and, if so, why? Based on liberal theory and a mixed-methods approach, the research suggests, firstly, that regional organizations are in a better position to engage in collective action in IOs if they can develop group positions for a broad range of items. This is easier the greater the capacities and the stronger the incentives of the member states, the smaller the number of actors participating in regional organizations’ coordination meetings, and the more homogenous groups are. Secondly, regional organizations are especially successful in IOs if they have common positions that their experienced and knowledgeable member states can push via argumentative strategies and if regional organizations can rely on the larger membership when it comes to playing two-level games in UNGA negotiations (tied-hands strategy) and when it comes to voting in IOs.

Commemorating the 10th Anniversary of World Autism Awareness Day

2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 260-272
Author(s):  
Tim Morse
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
General Assembly ◽  
Member States ◽  
10Th Anniversary ◽  
United Nations General ◽  
Educational Challenges ◽  
Students With Autism ◽  
United Nations General Assembly ◽  
The United Nations ◽  
Main Components

On December 18, 2007, the United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution 62/139 which established World Autism Awareness Day—one of only four official health-specific UN Days. The original resolution had four main components, which included celebrating World Autism Awareness Day every April 2 and encouraging member states to raise the awareness of autism at all levels in society. In accordance with this latter component of the resolution, the purpose of this article is to raise educators’ awareness about some of the most salient issues that need to be addressed as schools continue to implement necessary reforms for meeting the educational challenges posed by students with autism.

The United Nations and the European Union

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carla Monteleone
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
United Nations ◽  
General Assembly ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Member States ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The United Nations ◽  
Organizational Cooperation ◽  
The Eu

The European Union (EU) and the United Nations (UN) are expressions of a rules-based global order. The EU has enshrined support to the UN in its security strategies, and its priorities indicate an engagement in a wide range of UN programs and activities to maintain the rules-based order and adapt it to face internal and external challenges. The EU and its member states are the largest contributors to the UN budget. Following the adoption of the Lisbon treaty, the EU has increased its representation at the UN, gaining enhanced observer status in the General Assembly. However, because of the intergovernmental nature of the forum, only its member states have the right to vote. This has led scholars to investigate the actorness of the EU at the UN through the analysis of the voting cohesion of EU member states in the General Assembly. Less attention has been paid to the behavior of EU member states in the Security Council. Existing scholarship has tended to analyze how the EU acts within the UN more than inter-organizational cooperation. However, the contribution of the EU and its member states to UN activities in the area of peace and security maintenance is particularly relevant and is a reminder that inter-organizational cooperation deserve greater attention than the one it has received so far.

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