Roosevelt, Churchill And The Creation Of The United Nations

Today opens the 74th UN General Assembly. For many New Yorkers, mentioning the General Assembly evokes images of a Manhattan traffic apocalypse. Traffic notwithstanding, the United Nations reflects the remarkable vision of two great leaders: Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill.  

It was December 1941. After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, America had entered WWII and immediately experienced a series of setbacks in the Pacific. The war in Europe and Africa was going nearly poorly too. Nazi troops were on the outskirts of Moscow and British forces faced losses in Libya. Amid this gloom, Churchill arrived at the White House. He and Roosevelt met extensively on the military situation and Anglo-American cooperation. Several months prior, the two had issued the Atlantic Charter. When the war’s outcome remained uncertain, this landmark document dared to imagine a free and peaceful future. The charter asserted the rights of self-government as well as economic and social freedom for all. It also laid the groundwork for international collaboration on a variety of topics from trade to defense.

Now, Churchill and Roosevelt sought to formalize their war aims and clarify the relationship between the numerous allied nations. Yet, they struggled to find a suitable name for their coalition. The name came to the president in a flash of inspiration. He raced to Churchill's bedroom and announced: "the United Nations!" Roosevelt quickly realized that his guest was stark naked and begged his pardon. Churchill allegedly replied: "the prime minister of Great Britain has nothing to hide from the president of the United States!"

Tall tale or not, both men were unswervingly committed to building a better world from the ashes of WWII. On New Year’s Day 1942, Roosevelt and Churchill, along with representatives from two-dozen other countries signed the Declaration by United Nations. The declaration stated that total victory over their Fascist foes was “essential to defend life, liberty, independence and religious freedom, and to preserve human rights and justice.” Over the next three years, Roosevelt, Churchill, and their allies continued to elaborate their vision of the postwar order. That order demanded international organizations to address global challenges and foster interdependence.

The League of Nations

WWI was supposed to be the war that ended war. Four years of global conflict had left over 20 million dead. The old order had died in the trenches of Europe, on the frozen plains of Russia and in the scorching deserts of the Middle East. A fearful and unstable world crawled out from the rubble. 

If one man had a sweeping vision for the new order, it was President Woodrow Wilson. He had kept America out of the war until 1917, but by 1918, America was intervening decisively in Europe. Wilson provided a bold roadmap for the postwar world in his Fourteen Points. These points ranged from freedom of the seas to arms reduction, but the point closest to Wilson’s heart was the creation of the League of Nations. Through the League, Wilson hoped to maintain world peace, guarantee national self-determination and spread Western ideals. 

At the Paris Peace Conference in 1919, negotiations around the League got off to a rocky start. Arguments erupted over the war’s territorial spoils, with Italy even walking out at one point. Japan proposed a declaration of racial equality, which was vehemently opposed by America and the European colonial powers. When most nations supported the declaration, Wilson simply ignored them. America and the European colonial powers harbored continual fears of being outvoted by the smaller states. As a result, they contrived a system requiring unanimity, which hampered the League’s capacity for action.

As the months went on, disputes over the Middle East, China, and Eastern Europe continued the mar the conference. However, Wilson found his greatest struggle waiting for him at home. Many Republican Congressmen were alarmed by the League’s Article X, which guaranteed mutual military assistance. This article and others raised deep concerns about the loss of American sovereignty and the potential for future entanglements. Rather than attempting to win over Congress, Wilson stubbornly took his message to the American people. He embarked on a brutal cross-country tour that ruined his health and solidified Congressional opposition to the League. In a bitter irony for Wilson, America refused to ratify the peace treaties or join the League.

America’s absence weakened the League from the outset. As America withdrew from the international stage, Britain and France were left to carry the burden of Western democratic ideals. While the League did resolve some disputes, it proved poorly suited to deal with the challenges wrought by the Great Depression. Facing dire economic straits, many countries experienced a surge in radical nationalism.

By the mid-1930s the limitations of the League were painfully apparent. Italy’s invasion of Ethiopia showed that the promise of mutual protection was hollow. Ethiopia appeals to the League to invoke Article X were in vain. League goals around disarmament also crumbled as Hitler brazenly ignored the terms of the World Disarmament Conference. Ultimately, the League proved powerless against Fascist aggression in the West and Japanese imperialism in the East.

A wartime vision

In the years following WWI, Churchill became an outspoken opponent of Fascism and Nazism. He repeatedly warned about the dangers of German rearmament. Roosevelt similarly despised Fascism and criticized American isolationism. Both desired to create a liberal order that promoted individual freedoms and economic development. Both recognized that such a world demanded international cooperation.

In envisioning the postwar world, Roosevelt and Churchill actively sought to avoid the mistakes made after WWI. First, they recognized that all nations, victors and vanquished, must be treated equally by the United Nations. Second, they knew that collective action requires buy-in from all major powers. Third, they understood that the United Nations needed to have meaningful enforcement powers to combat the designs of aggressor states.

As WWII progressed, the vision for the United Nations came into sharper focus. At the 1943 Tehran Conference, Roosevelt introduced Stalin to the idea of an international organization. Stalin, whose nation had been ravaged by Nazi armies, saw value in an international body with the ability to rein in aggressors and address global issues. Later that year in Moscow, the Allies issued the Declaration of Four Nations on General Security (with China as the fourth member). This declaration provided both the framework for security in the postwar world and the backbone of future the UN Security Council. In addition, the Moscow Conference formally recognized the need for a successor to the League.

In 1944, as the war turned decisively in favor of the Allies, postwar planning gained even greater importance. At the Dumbarton Oaks Conference, America, Britain, the USSR and China further elaborated their ideas for the United Nations. They agreed on four objectives for the new organization: to maintain international peace and security, to develop friendly relations among nations, to achieve international cooperation and to coordinate national actions to achieve these common ends. These four principles would become Article I of the UN Charter. In June 1945, the United Nations held its first meeting.

Our modern world

Since WWII, humanity has moved towards greater peace and prosperity. Nations have grown closer through economic, social and diplomatic ties. Intergovernmental organizations including NATO, the European Union and the United Nations have created new forums for cooperation. The 193 member states of the United Nations have taken collective action on global challenges from childhood poverty to climate change. Traffic notwithstanding, the General Assembly stands as a lasting testament to Roosevelt and Churchill’s far-sighted vision.