Defining the Work of the United Nations: From the challenge of third world activism to a resurgent western security agenda

1989 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 505-541 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joe D. Hagan

This article presents a cross-national analysis of the relationship between domestic political regime changes and voting realignments of Third World nations in the United Nations (UN). It seeks to move beyond existing research that has assumed that foreign policy is rooted in political and economic structures and changes only when a political revolution occurs. It argues that a wider variety of regime changes—ranging from those involving mainstream political parties to milder ones such as factional shifts in single-party regimes—can also provoke major realignments. Using a new data set on Third World regimes, the article examines the impact of regime changes for eighty-seven nations on their UN voting patterns during the period from 1946 to 1984. Although the findings indicate that revolutions are most likely to provoke major voting realignments, they also show that the more frequent, nonrevolutionary types of regime change are associated with many voting realignments. A major implication of these findings is that foreign policy changes reflect a complex set of domestic regime factors, including leadership belief systems and internal political constraints, as well as aspects of political structure.


1949 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 748-758

The year between 1 July 1948 and 30 June 1949 covered in this, my fourth annual report on the work of the United Nations, has been, on the whole, a year of progress towards a more peaceful world.It is true that the world has had its full share of crises and alarms. The rival claims in an ideological conflict have been pressed as though they were the only issue of our times, while the great Powers have continued their efforts to strengthen their relative positions before the situation is brought nearer to stability by the conclusion of peace treaties. Although overshadowed by the great Power differences, movements of national independence and social upheavals in many parts of the world have unavoidably contributed to international tensions. These conditions, which have persisted since the war ended, continue to cause widespread anxiety among the peoples of the world as to the prospects for world peace and the ability of the United Nations to prevent a third world war.


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