UN Opens in London: Global Diplomacy Begins
Fifty-one nations gathered in London's Methodist Central Hall on January 10, 1946, determined not to repeat the League of Nations' failure. The General Assembly gave every member state one vote regardless of size, meaning Luxembourg carried the same weight as the Soviet Union on resolutions. This radical equality was balanced by the Security Council, where five permanent members held veto power, a compromise that kept the great powers inside the institution at the cost of frequent paralysis. The first session tackled everything from Iranian sovereignty to the status of refugees, establishing the procedural architecture that still governs international cooperation. Unlike the League, the UN survived because it accepted its own contradictions. It could not prevent the Cold War, but it gave adversaries a permanent forum for talking instead of shooting.
January 10, 1946
80 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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