The United Nations was established after the end of the World War II, on 24 October 1945.
The purposes of the United Nations include the maintenance of international peace and security, development of friendly relations among nations, international cooperation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character, and the promotion and encouragement of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
UN principles include sovereign equality of Member States, fulfilment by the Member States in good faith of their obligations assumed in accordance with the UN Charter, peaceful settlement of international disputes, refraining from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nations, assistance by the Member States for the UN activities taken in accordance with the UN Charter, compliance by non-member states with the UN principles, and non-interference in the internal affairs of any state.
The main bodies of the United Nations are the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice, and the Secretariat.
After regaining independence on 18 October 1991, the Republic of Azerbaijan was admitted to the UN membership on 2 March 1992. UN membership has opened up opportunities for Azerbaijan to join the international community as an equal member, to ensure its security and prosperity using the mechanisms provided for in the UN Charter, as well as to contribute to international peace and development.
The foundation of a meaningful partnership between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the United Nations was laid in September 1994 with the participation of H.E. Mr. Heydar Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, at the 49th session of the UN General Assembly. Azerbaijan actively participates in political dialogue and practical cooperation within the framework of the United Nations.
Azerbaijan closely co-operates with the main bodies, specialised agencies and other structures within the UN system. By participating in the work of the UN election bodies, Azerbaijan contributes to the implementation of the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. Azerbaijan was elected to the Executive Board of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) (1995-1997, 1998-2000, 2005-2009), the Commission on the Status of Women (2000-2002), the Commission on Sustainable Development (2002-2004), the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) (2003-2005, 2017-2019), the Human Rights Commission (2005-2006), the Human Rights Council (2006-2009), the Executive Board of the World Health Organisation (2006-2009), UNDP/UNFPA Executive Board (2008-2010), the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (2009-2011, 2018-2020), the Security Council (2012-2013), the Executive Board of the World Tourism Organisation (2013-2017, 2018-2021), the Council of the International Telecommunication Union (2015-2018, 2019-2022), the Radio Regulation Board of the International Telecommunication Union (2019-2022), the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (2019-2022), the Governing Body of the International Labour Organisation (2017-2020), the Postal Operations Council of the Universal Postal Union (2017- 2020), the Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families (CMW) (2018-2021, 2022-2025), the Intergovernmental Bioethics Committee of the UNESCO (IGBC) (2019-2022), the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage of the UNESCO (ICH) (2019-2022), the Committee for the Review of Applications for Affiliate Membership of the WTO (2019-2021), the Intergovernmental Committee for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (ICPPDC) (2019-2023), the International Committee for Physical Education and Sports (CIGEPS) of the UNESCO (2019-2023), the International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC) of the UNESCO (2019-2023), the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) (2021-2024), and the Committee for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of the UNESCO (2021-2025).
The UN activities are based on three pillars: peace and security, development and human rights.
As an active member of the international community, Azerbaijan continuously contributes to the maintenance of international peace and security, which is one of the purposes enshrined in the UN Charter. To this end, Azerbaijan participates in political discussions on peace and security at the UN bodies and contributes to the practical activities carried out under the UN mandate.
Azerbaijan’s non-permanent membership at the UN Security Council in 2012-2013 has increased the country’s role in the political processes in the field of international peace and security. During its membership at the UN Security Council, which has the primary responsibility for maintenance of international peace and security, the Azerbaijani side has always advocated for international law and justice. During its membership in the Council, Azerbaijan twice chaired the Security Council on a rotating basis. During the first chairmanship, on 4 May 2012, a high-level meeting chaired by H.E. Mr. Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, was held at the Security Council in the context of the threats posed by terrorism to international peace and security on the theme “Strengthening international cooperation in the implementation of counter-terrorism obligations”. During the second chairmanship, the Azerbaijani side dedicated the high-level meeting to the theme “Strengthening the partnership synergy between the United Nations and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)”. It was the first time that such meeting, held on 28 October 2013, was dedicated to this topic. In addition, upon the initiative of Azerbaijan Arria Formula meeting of the Security Council on “Peaceful settlement of disputes, conflict prevention and resolution: mediation, judicial settlement and justice” was held on 30 May 2012.
In general, during its membership at the UN Security Council, Azerbaijan has been closely involved in making important decisions on international peace and security, and contributed to consolidating the international consensus in this field.
Since 1999 Azerbaijan has contributed to a number of international peacekeeping operations conducted under the UN Security Council mandate. Azerbaijan participated in the NATO-led operation in the Kosovo region of Serbia (KFOR) (on the basis of Resolution 1244 (1999)), in Afghanistan (ISAF) (on the basis of Resolution 1386 (2001), in Iraq (MNF-I) (on the basis of Resolution 1511 (2003)), and in the Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan (on the basis of Resolution 2189 (2014)). At present Azerbaijan participates in the UN mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
Azerbaijan cooperates with the relevant UN agencies to promote thematic issues on peace and security. On 18-19 March 2013 Azerbaijan in cooperation with the relevant agencies of the United Nations and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation hosted a high-level international conference on “Strengthening cooperation to prevent terrorism”. In addition, effective cooperation is being carried out with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in the field of combatting terrorism, organised crime, drug trafficking and other relevant areas.
Development and cooperation are among the purposes of the UN. Given the important role of enhanced prosperity and cooperation in preventing wars and strengthening peace and security, significant opportunities for practical cooperation in the area of development have been formed within the UN. During high-level discussions at the UN development issues have been identified as a main task, and it has been decided to achieve certain goals in this direction within a specific time frame. At the 2015 UN Summit it was decided to continue the efforts, initiated at the 2000 Summit, for the next 15 years (until 2030), and a number of specific targets for global development (169 targets within 17 Sustainable Development Goals) were set. The UN promotes international cooperation in this area through its various agencies.
Since Azerbaijan joined the United Nations, significant cooperation on development issues has been established. Azerbaijan’s cooperation with the UN in this area covers important development issues such as economic growth, poverty eradication, food security, education, environment, gender equality etc.
On 1 March 2021 the United Nations – Azerbaijan Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework for 2021-2025 was signed. Also in 2021 separate Country Programme Documents for 2021-2025 on cooperation of the Republic of Azerbaijan with the UNDP, UNFPA and UNICEF have been approved.
Guided by the principles of humanitarian solidarity, Azerbaijan has started to provide assistance to a number of countries since it gained certain economic opportunities. To this end, the Government of Azerbaijan established the Azerbaijan International Development Agency (AIDA) under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2011 and provides international humanitarian and development assistance through the Agency. Azerbaijan also shares its best practices in e-government and public services within the UN.
Azerbaijan is actively involved in the development of international law, including the codification of international law. In its activities in this direction, the Azerbaijani side is guided by the principles of international law, such as sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity, sovereign equality and non-interference in internal affairs of states.
Based on this approach, Azerbaijan is also actively involved in the processes of promoting human rights within the UN framework. Azerbaijan has been the main sponsor or a co-sponsor of a number of resolutions adopted by the UN bodies. These include resolutions entitled “Missing Persons” and “Release of women and children taken hostage, including those subsequently imprisoned, in armed conflicts”. Along with the issue of ensuring common standards in the field of human rights, Azerbaijan calls for increased attention to cases of mass violations of human rights (especially during conflicts).
Given the importance of strengthening solidarity, multilateralism and international cooperation in combatting COVID-19 pandemic, based on the proposal of H.E. Mr. Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, in his capacity as Chair of the Non-Aligned Movement, at the initiative of the NAM and with the overwhelming support of the UN Member States, the 31st Special Session of the UN General Assembly at the level of Heads of State and Government on combatting the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic was convened on 3-4 December 2020. 147 Member States, with more than 70 of them represented at the level of the Head of State or Government, and 48 of them represented at the ministerial level, addressed the high-level segment of the Special Session.
On 23 March 2021 within the 46th session of the UN Human Rights Council upon the initiative of the NAM Azerbaijani Chairmanship the resolution entitled “Ensuring equitable, affordable, timely and universal access for all countries to vaccines in response to the COVID-19 pandemic” was adopted. The resolution draws the attention to the negative impact of unfair and uneven distribution of COVID-19 vaccines between developed and developing countries on the enjoyment of human rights, and to the fact that this prevents the complete elimination of the pandemic, and hampers the progress in the realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The resolution was co-sponsored by 137 states, which is a quite high number for resolutions adopted by the UN Human Rights Council.
On 16 December 2021 based on the proposal of H.E. Mr. Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, in his capacity as Chair of the Non-Aligned Movement, at the initiative of the NAM and with the overwhelming support of the UN Member States (179) the resolution entitled “Ensuring equitable, affordable, timely and universal access for all countries to vaccines in response to the COVID-19 pandemic” was adopted at a plenary meeting within the 76th session of the General Assembly. The resolution was co-sponsored by 126 UN Member States. The adoption of the resolution was yet another proof that the Non-Aligned Movement chaired by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, continues to stand at the centre of global efforts in combatting COVID-19 pandemic.
The most important issue in Azerbaijan-UN cooperation in the field of peace and security was to obtain international support for ending Armenia’s continued use of force against the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan and ensuring the country’s territorial integrity. Guided by its purpose to maintain international peace and security the UN adopted a number of resolutions and documents on the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict.
In 1993 the Security Council adopted resolutions 822, 853, 874 and 884. These resolutions expressed support for the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and demanded the withdrawal of the occupying forces from the territory of Azerbaijan.
During 1992-1995 the UN Security Council Presidents issued statements affirming the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan and supporting the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group aimed at the peaceful settlement of the conflict.
In 1993 the UN General Assembly adopted resolution titled “Emergency international assistance to refugees and displaced persons in Azerbaijan”, in 2006 and 2008 it adopted resolutions entitled “Situation in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan”.