V. MEMBERSHIP AND ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NA- Membership of Principal Organs of the United Nations. Membership of Specialized Agencies in Relationship With the United Nations, December 31, 1947. Charts 1. United Nations 2. General Assembly 3. Security Council 4. Economic and Social Council Page 344 344 346 351 351 352 353 354 355 356 5. Trusteeship Council (International Trusteeship System) 6. Secretariat Facing Tests T THE UNITED NATIONS was the object of great concern and anxious assessment during its second year of existence. Despite hardships, it has emerged with increased vitality and strength by meeting its responsibilities. The anxiety regarding the United Nations reflected equally the reliance placed upon it by its Members and the doubts which had developed during the year that the United Nations could measure up to its responsibilities in the difficult international circumstances. Earlier prospects of rapid transition to settled world conditions faded away, and with them the optimism following the military victory was largely lost. As the existing realities of the international situation confronted the United Nations with difficult tests, however, a new determination gradually emerged on the part of the great majority of the Members to give faithful effect to the Charter. The firmness of that determination was increasingly shown by the majority of the Members in the latter months of the year. Fundamentally, the United Nations had to choose in 1947 between two risks in shaping its course: the risk if it avoided decisions and recommendations on the larger issues and engaged in quiet work on the lesser controversial matters, and the risk if it boldly took hold of the troubles pouring in upon it and made realistic decisions and recommendations. The first alternative might promise some moderation of the international atmosphere by not entailing heated debate on major issues in the world's great forum of opinion; it thereby might seem to avoid any possible hazard to the existence of the United Nations. That course would assuredly have doomed the United Nations to dealing only with matters of secondary account and to betrayal of the vital principles and purposes of its Charter. The United Nations chose the second alternative. The organization was designed to deal with troubles-problems on which Members feel strongly and on which they are unable through their own direct and other diplomatic relations to reach a conciliation of views and agreement. Thousands of problems and questions have been handled every year in the diplomatic relations of Members with other Members, |