Is the United Nations now irrelevant.........

[smithers]

............. now that it has failed in the recent past to deal with situations in Rwanda, Former Yugoslavia, Palestine/Israel and now taking 12 years and failing to disarm Saddam. With a looming crisis brewing in North Korea will the UN make any difference unless they change it's structure and remove the Veto option?

[Miss Zippy]

I wouldn't know where to begin on re-structuring, but it does seem absurd, and wholly undemocratic, that only the five permanent members of the Security Council have the veto option. From what I can gather, the permanent members have this power to veto largely because between them they pay more than 50% of the UN's costs. More evidence that �� + $$ = power.

[RCP]

No - the United Nations is not now irrelevant. To be honest it's always been irrelevant. With regard to "trouble spots" they have only gone in to do a peacekeeping job after someone else has done the dirty work. The U.N. is a toothless behemoth riddled with divisiveness & self interest (no criticism intended, with human nature the way it is it could never be any other way).

[brooklyn77]

UN ??? who are they? Peacekeepers ?? and ruddy useless they are at it. They are a joke....just like Chiraq Pathetic and toothless, no one fears them. i wouldnt.