The UK & UN, NATO, EU and Council of Europe (AQA GCSE Citizenship Studies): Revision Note

The UK and the United Nations (UN)

• The United Nations (UN) was created in 1945 after the Second World War to help prevent future conflict and encourage cooperation between countries

  • The United Kingdom was a founding member

• It is based in New York and today has 193 member states

The four main goals of the UN

The UN Security Council

• The UK is one of five permanent members of the UN Security Council, alongside

  • the USA

  • Russia

  • France

  • China

• Each of these countries has a veto, meaning they can block any Security Council resolution

  • This gives the UK significant influence in international decision-making.

The UK’s influence at the UN

• As it has a permanent seat on the Security Council, the UK has significant diplomatic influence, even though it has less military and economic power than other leading members

  • This influence, gained through cooperation, diplomacy and reputation, is an example of soft power

• UK civil servants, experts and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) also contribute to the work of many UN agencies, such as

  • the World Health Organisation (WHO)

  • UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation)

  • UNRWA, the UN agency supporting Palestinian refugees, which is currently in the news because of its work in Gaza

The UK and NATO

• NATO (the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) was created in 1949 as a mutual defence alliance

  • The UK was a founding member

• It was originally formed to protect Western countries from the Soviet Union and other communist states in Europe, which were part of the Warsaw Pact

Membership and defence commitment

• Today, NATO has 32 member countries

  • Finland joined in 2023

  • Sweden joined in 2024

• All members agree to support each other if one is attacked

  • This is known as Article 5, the core of the NATO treaty

NATO organisation

• NATO’s headquarters are in Belgium

• It has both a military structure and a political structure that work together to coordinate defence and decision-making

• In October 2024, Mark Rutte, former Prime Minister of the Netherlands, became the Secretary General, the organisation’s senior political leader

NATO and recent events

• In recent years, the USA has pushed NATO members, including the UK, to increase their defence spending

• Many NATO countries have recently supported Ukraine in its conflict with Russia by providing

  • military equipment

  • financial assistance

  • training for Ukrainian forces

The UK and the EU

• The European Union (EU) began as the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1957

  • Six countries - France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg - agreed to work together to boost economic growth

• They created a customs union, allowing goods to move freely between them

  • This group was often called the Common Market

• The UK originally chose not to join, and both major political parties were divided on the issue

  • However, the EEC helped drive rapid economic growth in Europe, and eventually the UK joined in 1973, along with Ireland and Denmark.

Debates about closer union

• As membership grew, some countries pushed for

  • a single market for goods and services

  • a single currency (the euro)

  • and for some, a more federal Europe with stronger shared institutions

• Others preferred a looser economic partnership.

  • In the UK, opposition increased towards deeper integration, especially once the EEC became the European Union (EU)

Brexit: A brief summary

• In 2016, the UK held a referendum on its membership of the European Union

  • The result was close, with 51.9% voting to Leave and 48.1% voting to Remain

  • This decision, known as Brexit, meant the UK would no longer be part of the EU

How the UK’s relationship with the EU has changed

• Since leaving the EU, the UK’s relationship with the EU has changed significantly

  • The UK is no longer part of the EU’s political structures, the single market, or customs union, and the previous rules on free movement of people no longer apply

  • The UK now negotiates its own trade deals, manages its own immigration system, and must agree new arrangements with the EU in areas such as trade, security, travel and cooperation

The UK and the Council of Europe

• The Council of Europe is Europe’s main human rights organisation, with 46 member states

• The UK was a founding member and helped create the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which all members must uphold

  • Citizens can take cases to the European Court of Human Rights once they have used all legal options in their own country

  • The Court is made up of judges nominated by each member state

Articles of the European Convention on Human Rights

• Some UK politicians argue the Court has exceeded its original purpose and want a British Bill of Rights so UK courts make the final decisions

  • In October 2024, the Reform Party attempted to bring forward a bill for the UK to leave the ECHR, but it was defeated in Parliament