What was the United Nations?
Answer
An international organization for peace
Explanation
The United Nations was an international organization founded after World War II to maintain international peace and security and to promote cooperation among nations. The UN was created by the United Nations Charter, signed in San Francisco on June 26, 1945 by representatives of 50 countries and entered into force on October 24, 1945, a date now celebrated as United Nations Day. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston Churchill had first proposed a postwar international body in the Atlantic Charter of August 1941, and Roosevelt coined the name United Nations on January 1, 1942 when 26 Allied governments signed the Declaration by United Nations pledging to fight the Axis powers together.
The detailed structure was negotiated at the Dumbarton Oaks Conference near Washington, D.C. from August to October 1944 and finalized at the San Francisco Conference from April to June 1945. Unlike the League of Nations after World War I, the United States joined the United Nations from the start. The Senate ratified the Charter on July 28, 1945 by a vote of 89 to 2. The UN's headquarters opened in New York City in 1952 on land donated by John D. Rockefeller Jr.
The organization has six main organs. The General Assembly includes every member state with one vote each. The Security Council has 15 members and the primary responsibility for peace and security, with the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, and France as permanent members holding veto power. The Secretariat handles administration under the Secretary-General. The International Court of Justice, based in The Hague, settles legal disputes. The Economic and Social Council coordinates economic and humanitarian work. The Trusteeship Council, now inactive, oversaw decolonization.
Specialized agencies such as UNICEF, the World Health Organization, the Food and Agriculture Organization, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees handle specific challenges. UN membership has grown from 51 in 1945 to 193 today, including South Sudan, the newest member, admitted in 2011. The UN has supervised peacekeeping missions, humanitarian relief, and human rights monitoring around the world. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the General Assembly on December 10, 1948, remains the founding text of international human rights law.
Why this matters for your test
USCIS asks about the United Nations because it is the most important international institution the United States helped create, and American support for it represents a major break from prewar isolationism. Understanding the UN helps applicants see the modern American commitment to global cooperation.
Source: USCIS 128 Civics Questions (2025)
