United Nations (UN)’s International Day of Neutrality is annually observed across the globe on December 12, with events held to raise public awareness of the importance of neutrality in international relations.
- Article 2 of the UN Charter also allows member states to settle disputes peacefully.
Background:
i. The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the resolution A/RES/71/275 on 2 February 2017 and declared December 12 of every year as the International Day of Neutrality.
ii. The 1st International Day of Neutrality was observed on 12th December 2017.
Neutrality:
Neutrality is defined as the legal status between an aggressive country and the neutral country, the country not participating in a war.
- It is critical in reducing the risk of damage to countries involved in the conflict.
Preventive Diplomacy:
i. The UN is committed to shifting from a “reaction” to a “prevention” culture.
ii. “Preventive diplomacy” refers to diplomatic action taken to prevent disputes from escalating into conflicts and to limit the spread of conflicts that do occur.
iii. The UN has been enthralled by the concept of preventive diplomacy ever since Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld introduced it over 50 years ago.
iv. Article 99 of the UN Charter foreshadowed preventive diplomacy by allowing the Secretary-General to alert the Security Council of dangers to global peace and security.
v. Preventive diplomacy includes early conflict detection and prevention, mediation, good offices, fact-finding missions, negotiation, sending special envoys, holding unofficial consultations, peacekeeping, and targeted development initiatives.
About the United Nations (UN):
Secretary-General- António Guterres
Headquarters- New York, USA
Establishment- 1945
