300429 International Organizations: A Focus on the UN (MUNAB) (S) (WiSe 2025/2026)

International organizations (IOs) are a central characteristic of world politics since the 19th century. While the first IOs were responsible for harmonizing traffic regulations and (communication) standards to facilitate international trade, other policy fields have been added over the years. Today, there is probably no policy field left in which not at least one IO is active. Almost all policy areas are dealt with in the United Nations (UN).

The UN have been founded in San Francisco in 1945 by 51 states that pledged to maintain peace through international cooperation and collective security. Today, almost every country in the world is a member of the UN. Membership extends to 193 countries. While peacekeeping is still the central task of the UN, today the organization is responsible for a variety of tasks in different policy areas, such as safeguarding human rights, protecting the environment and sustainable development. The UN is therefore the most universal international organization, both in terms of its membership and its policy-specific responsibilities.

The course aims at introducing participants to the theory and practice of the United Nations through a dynamic combination of academic study and simulation-based learning. It provides a comprehensive overview of the UN’s structure, including its founding charter and key organs such as the Security Council, General Assembly, and International Court of Justice.

The course will examine IOs in general and the UN in particular. We aim to approach IOs and the UN from an International Law and International Relations perspective. To do so, the course is divided into three parts. After the introductory session, the first part introduces the topic from the perspective of International Law. In addition to a general classification of IOs and the UN as an actor in international law, we will provide a brief overview of the history, development and tasks of the UN, including current reform efforts. We will also discuss the significance of the UN Charter in the context of constitutionalization trends. The second part will deal with the theoretical and conceptual positioning of IOs and the UN in world politics and the presentation of selected main and subsidiary organs and specialized agencies of the UN. In the third part, students will learn about the negotiation system of the UN through a simulation. The simulation focuses on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and the actions of the state representatives assembled there.