The United Nations General Assembly has granted observer status to international organizations, entities, and non-member states, to enable them to participate in the work of the United Nations General Assembly, though with limitations. The General Assembly determines the privileges it will grant to each observer, beyond those laid down in a 1986 Conference on treaties between states and international organizations.[1] Exceptionally, the European Union (EU) was in 2011 granted the right to speak in debates, to submit proposals and amendments, the right of reply, to raise points of order and to circulate documents, etc. As of May 2011, the EU is the only international organization to hold these enhanced rights, which has been likened to the rights of full membership,[2] short of the right to vote.
Observer status may be granted by a United Nations General Assembly resolution. The status of a permanent observer is based purely on practice of the General Assembly, and there are no provisions for it in the United Nations Charter.[3] The practice is to distinguish between state and non-state observers. Non-member states are members of one or more specialized agencies, and can apply for permanent observer state status.[3] Non-state observers are the international organizations and other entities.
Non-member observers
The General Assembly may invite non-member entities to participate in the work of the United Nations without formal membership, and has done so on numerous occasions. Such participants are described as observers, some of which may be further classified as non-member state observers. Most former non-member observer states accepted observer status at a time when they had applied for membership but were unable to attain it, due to the actual or threatened veto by one or more of the permanent members of the Security Council. The grant of observer status is made by the General Assembly only; it is not subject to a Security Council veto.
In some circumstances a state may elect to become an observer rather than full member. For example, to preserve its neutrality while participating in its work, Switzerland chose to remain a permanent non-member state observer from 1948 until it became a member in 2002.
Current non-member observers
As of November 2025, there are two permanent non-member observer states in the General Assembly of the United Nations: the Holy See and the State of Palestine.[4] Both were described as "Non-Member States having received a standing invitation to participate as Observers in the sessions and the work of the General Assembly and maintaining Permanent Observer Missions at Headquarters".[5]
The Holy See uncontroversially obtained its non-member observer state status in 1964. The Holy See did not wish to join the United Nations as a member because "Membership in the organization would not seem to be consonant with the provisions of Article 24 of the Lateran Treaty, particularly as regards spiritual status and participation in possible use of force."[6] Since April 6, 1964, the Holy See has accepted permanent observer state status, which was regarded as a diplomatic courtesy, to enable the Holy See to participate in the UN's humanitarian activities and in the promotion of peace.
In 2012, Palestine's observer status was changed from "non-member observer entity" to "non-member observer state", which many called "symbolic".[7] The change followed an application by Palestine for full UN membership in 2011[8] as part of the Palestine 194 campaign, to provide additional leverage to the Palestinians in their dealings with Israel.[9] The application had not been put to a UN Security Council vote.[10] With the change in status, the United Nations Secretariat held that Palestine was entitled to become a party to treaties for which the UN Secretary-General is the depositary.[11] On 17 December 2012, UN Chief of Protocol, Yeocheol Yoon, declared that "the designation of 'State of Palestine' shall be used by the Secretariat in all official United Nations documents."[12]
The seating in the General Assembly Hall is arranged with non-member observer states being seated immediately after UN member states, and before other observers.[13] On 10 September 2015, the General Assembly resolved to approve the raising at the UN of the flags of non-member observer states alongside those of the 193 UN member states.[14]
| Non-member state[5] | Date granted observer status | Additional timeline and details |
|---|---|---|
| Holy See | 6 April 1964: granted permanent observer state status 1 July 2004: gained all the rights of full membership except voting rights, submission of resolution proposals without co-sponsoring, and putting forward candidates (A/RES/58/314)[13] | The sovereign entity with statehood over the territory of the Vatican City State. |
| State of Palestine | 14 October 1974: UN General Assembly recognized the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as the representative of Palestinians, and granted it the right to participate in General Assembly deliberations on the question of Palestine in plenary meetings (A/RES/3210 (XXIX))[15]22 November 1974: non-state observer status granted to the PLO (A/RES/3237 (XXIX))[16] 9 December 1988: granted the right to circulate communications without an intermediary (A/RES/43/160)[17] 15 December 1988: designation changed to "Palestine" (A/RES/43/177)[18] 7 July 1998: granted additional rights, including the right to participate in general debate (A/RES/52/250)[19] 29 November 2012: status changed to non-member observer state (A/RES/67/19):[20][21] 16 October 2018: temporarily granted additional rights while Chair of the Group of 77 for 2019 (A/RES/73/5).[22] 10 May 2024: granted additional rights, including to be seated with member states, introduce proposals and agenda items, and participate in committees, but not the right to vote (A/ES-10/23).[23] | 28 October 1974: PLO recognized as "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people", by the 7th Arab League summit (and later by over 100 states with which it holds diplomatic relations and by Israel).[24][25][26][27] 22 November 1974: PLO recognized as competent on all matters concerning the question of Palestine by the General Assembly in addition to the right of Palestinians in Palestine to national independence and sovereignty. 15 November 1988: PLO unilaterally declared the State of Palestine. 4 May 1994: PLO established the Palestinian National Authority territorial administration per the Oslo Accords signed by the PLO, Israel, US and Russia. 7 July 1998: PLO assigned seating in the General Assembly Hall after non-member states and before other observers.[19][28] 23 September 2011: applied for UN membership[29] 17 December 2012: UN Chief of Protocol Yeocheol Yoon decides "the designation of 'State of Palestine' shall be used by the Secretariat in all official United Nations documents."[12] |
Notes:
- The Cook Islands and Niue, both states in free association with New Zealand, are members of several UN specialized agencies, and have had their "full treaty-making capacity" recognized by the UN Secretariat in 1992 and 1994 respectively.[30][31] The Cook Islands has expressed a desire to become a UN member state, but New Zealand has said that they would not support the application without a change in their constitutional relationship, in particular the right of Cook Islanders to New Zealand citizenship.[32]
- The Republic of China (ROC), commonly known as Taiwan, was a founding member of the UN representing China, which has been divided between the ROC and the People's Republic of China (PRC) since the end of the Chinese Civil War. However, the 1971 General Assembly Resolution 2758 transferred China's seat in the UN from the ROC to the PRC. Since then, Taiwan has sought to resume its participation in UN activities. Various methods were considered, including seeking observer status,[33] but ultimately the ROC chose to submit more vague requests which did not specify the form of participation it sought between 1993 and 2006.[34][35] These requests have been consistently denied due to the UN's recognition of the PRC as the "legitimate representative of China to the United Nations".[36] The UN Secretary-General concluded from the resolution that the General Assembly considered Taiwan to be a province of China rather than an independent country, and thus ineligible to become party to treaties for which the UN Secretary-General is the depositary.[37]
- The UN recognizes 17 non-self-governing territories "whose people have not yet attained a full measure of self-government"; they are represented at the UN by their respective administering power.[38] However, Western Sahara's administering power, Spain, unilaterally abandoned its responsibilities for the territory in 1976.[39] The Polisario Front has since been recognized as the legitimate representative of Western Sahara and is occasionally invited to speak as the territory's representative before the Special Committee on Decolonization, but it has never been conferred General Assembly observer status.[40][41]
Former non-member observers
Sixteen former non-member states were also granted observer status.[42][43] Fourteen of those states eventually became members of the United Nations. The other three constitute a single special case.[Note 1]
Most of the former non-member observer states accepted this status at a time when they had applied for membership but were unable to attain it, due to the (actual or threatened) veto of one or more of the permanent members of the Security Council. The vetoes were later overcome either by changes in geopolitical circumstances, or by "package deals" under which the Security Council approved multiple new member states at the same time, as was done with a dozen countries in 1955 and with East and West Germany in 1973.[citation needed]
| State | Granted | Became full member | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austria | 1952 | 1955 | years |
| Bangladesh | 1973 | 1974 | year |
| Finland | 1952 | 1955 | years |
| West Germany | 1952 | 1973 | years |
| East Germany | 1972 | 1973 | year |
| Italy | 1952 | 1955 | years |
| Japan | 1952 | 1956 | years |
| Republic of Korea | 1949 | 1991 | years |
| Democratic People's Republic of Korea | 1973 | 1991 | years |
| Kuwait | 1962 | 1963 | year |
| Monaco | 1956 | 1993 | years |
| Francoist Spain | 1955 | 1955 | years |
| Switzerland | 1946 | 2002 | years |
| State of Vietnam Republic of Vietnam | 1952 | —[Note 1] | years |
| Republic of South Vietnam | 1975 | —[Note 1] | year |
| Democratic Republic of Vietnam | 1975 | —[Note 1] | year |
| Vietnam | 1976 | 1977[Note 1] | 1 year |
- Notes
Entities and international organizations
Many intergovernmental organizations and a few other entities (non-governmental organizations and others with various degrees of statehood or sovereignty), are invited to become observers at the General Assembly. Some of them maintain a permanent office in the United Nations headquarters in New York City, while others do not; however, this is the choice of the organization and does not imply differences in their status.[44]
Regional organization allowed by their member states to speak on their behalf
While the EU is an observer, it is party to some 50 international UN agreements as the only non-state participant. It is a full participant on the Commission on Sustainable Development, the Forum on Forests and the Food and Agriculture Organization. It has also been a full participant at certain UN summits, such as the Rio and Kyoto summits on climate change, including hosting a summit. Furthermore, the EU delegation maintains close relations with the UN's aid bodies.[45] In 2011 the EU was granted enhanced powers in the General Assembly; the right to speak in debates, to submit proposals and amendments, the right of reply, to raise points of order and to circulate documents. These rights were also made open to other international organizations who requested them,[46][2] if their members have given them the right to speak on their behalf.[47]
In the resolution adopted in May 2011 granting additional rights to the European Union the UNGA decided that similar arrangements may be adopted for any other regional organization that is allowed to speak on behalf of its member states.[47]
| Organization or entity | Date observer status was granted | Entity type |
|---|---|---|
| European Union[note 1] | 11 October 1974 (A/RES/3208 (XXIX)): observer status[48] 10 May 2011 (A/RES/65/276):[47] additional rights | The only observer that operates through a hybrid system of intergovernmentalism and supranationalism, giving it some state-like qualities. |
Intergovernmental organizations
Those organizations that have permanent offices at the UN headquarters are marked with an asterisk (*).
Specialized agencies and related organizations
Some of UN Specialized agencies and related organizations are having liaison offices at the UN headquarters, some were auto-granted since their establishment (i.e. without passing General Assembly resolutions).
Other entities
All five entities are maintaining permanent offices at the UN headquarters.
| Organization or entity | Date observer status was granted |
|---|---|
| International Committee of the Red Cross | 16 Oct 1990 (A/RES/45/6)[76] |
| International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies | 19 Oct 1994 (A/RES/49/2)[77] |
| International Olympic Committee | 20 Oct 2009 (A/RES/64/3)[78] |
| Inter-Parliamentary Union | 19 Nov 2002 (A/RES/57/32)[79] |
| Sovereign Military Order of Malta | 24 Aug 1994 (A/RES/48/265)[80] |
Former observers
| Organization or entity | Date observer status was granted | Entity type |
|---|---|---|
| South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) | 1976 (A/RES/31/152)[17][81] | SWAPO, a liberation movement in South West Africa, held observer status with the right to circulate communications without intermediary beginning in 1976. This terminated in 1990 when the Republic of Namibia attained independence and was granted full membership in the United Nations and SWAPO was transformed into a political party. |
See also
- Member states of the United Nations
- List of current permanent representatives to the United Nations
- List of active national liberation movements recognized by intergovernmental organizations
- List of organizations with consultative status to the United Nations Economic and Social Council
- Category:United Nations General Assembly observers
Notes
- ^ Originally under the designation of European Communities. The EC formally became the EU on 1 December 2009 and was acknowledged by 2011.
References
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External links
- Full list of UNGA and ECOSOC observers with admission resolutions details, January 2010
- United Nations General Assembly
- United Nations missions in New York City
- About Permanent Observers
- Non-Member-States
- Intergovernmental and Other Organizations
- Specialized Agencies
- UN Info Quest – Organizations granted observer status in the General Assembly
- Blue Book "Permanent Missions to the United Nations No. 298" dated March 2008
- ^ The State of Vietnam was the predecessor state of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam). On 30 April 1975, South Vietnam was taken over by North Vietnamese forces. In July 1975, North Vietnam and the Republic of South Vietnam sent representatives to the United Nations to pursue admission.[82] On 2 July 1976, North Vietnam and the Republic of South Vietnam unified to form the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, which was also recorded as holding observer status at the UN. The UN General Assembly resolutions and decisions for the 30th and 31st sessions do not record the decision to grant observer status, but Resolution 31/21 of 26 November 1976 does refer to the "Permanent Observer of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam to the United Nations". Viet Nam became a member of the UN on 20 September 1977.[83]