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UNITED NATIONS - / www.MaximsNews.com, UN/ - 22 October 2006 -- On October 24, the United Nations celebrates its 61st birthday. It seems a great time to ask, "What good is the United Nations?"

At Fairleigh Dickinson University, where we have established close links with the world body and regularly welcome ambassadors, we often hear that question. Depending on the news of the day, we usually have a pretty good answer. Here's our latest response:

We could see the smoke from the bombs on the satellite map Web site, Google Earth. Refugees were fleeing along the road from Beirut to Damascus. One of those refugees was our dear friend and colleague Elise Salem, who was visiting her native land of Lebanon when war broke out in July.

The recent conflict in Lebanon claimed more than 1,000 lives, caused billions of dollars in damages and threatened to violently destabilize the entire region. And then came U.N. Resolution 1701, and a framework for a just and lasting peace was achieved that could have a positive impact on the entire region.

Certainly, Resolution 1701 is not perfect, but peace was forged and the potential for a lasting peace does exist. That is what the United Nations is good for. And that is precisely what the United Nations was designed to do: stop the fighting and create the potential for peaceful solutions.

Born of war

The United Nations was created in large part by the efforts of the . President Franklin D. Roosevelt's vision and dedication laid the framework. He even coined its name.  

Former U.S. Secretary of State Cordell Hull won the Nobel Peace Prize, mainly for his efforts in building the institution. President Harry S. Truman supported Roosevelt's vision with equal devotion, and in 1945, the vision became a reality.

The United Nations has succeeded most obviously in preventing the horror of a third world war, encouraging multinational dialogues and the development of international law, and providing a forum for governmental and non-governmental entities. 

It is active in peacekeeping, disarmament, economic development, environmental preservation, education and disease prevention. U.N. groups like UNICEF, the World Bank, the World Health Organization and the International Atomic Energy Agency have produced a long list of achievements, along with the inevitable stumble now and then.

It is less commonly known that the United Nations also handles international labor standards, international aviation safety provisions, international mail flow issues and international copyright laws, all of which significantly benefit Americans. 

In the words of former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, "If you have ever traveled on an international airline or shipping line, or placed a phone call overseas, or received mail from outside the country, or been thankful for an accurate weather report -- then you have been served directly or indirectly by one part or another of the U.N. system."

More helpful to U.S.

But many within view the United Nations with great suspicion, primarily because they see a significant threat to sovereignty. 

They would do well to heed the words of former U.S. Sen. Arthur Vandenberg, a Republican who supported the formation of the world body: "Though we cooperate wholeheartedly with the United Nations for peace and security, we remain the captains of our own souls."

Our veto power in the Security Council alone ensures that the United Nations does not act arbitrarily to harm interests. And when looked at historically, the United Nations has served interests far more than it has harmed them. 

Among other examples, the United Nations supported the dispatch of forces to in 1950 and the incursion into to expel Iraqi forces in 1991. 

After Sept. 11, 2001, it also moved swiftly to join the battle against terrorism, supporting the attack on and passing Resolution 1373, which "required nations to interdict arms flows and financial transfers to suspected terrorist groups, report on terrorists' movements and update national legislation to fight them."

When the United Nations speaks in a clear voice, it represents the greatest source of international legitimacy possible. 

When the Security Council passes a resolution it is not only legally binding, but it is widely respected, as we've seen with Resolution 1701. To solve global challenges requires a close partnership between the and the United Nations.

As President Dwight D. Eisenhower once said, "With all the defects ... the United Nations still represents man's best organized hope to substitute the conference table for the battlefield." 

Indeed, to attack the United Nations is to criticize the conference table. The United Nations is only as effective as the countries around that table. If we hope to strengthen the organization's effectiveness, the must play a leading role in reform efforts.

U.N. forces are now helping Lebanese troops police the border. 

What good is the United Nations? The bombs are no longer lighting up the night skies of .

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