The quest to point out the inherent weaknesses of the UN and the suggestions to abolish the institution altogether, or replace it with a league of democracies, have been gaining momentum in recent years. With good reason, although we should note that the UN did produce some important resolutions that form the basis of many important international arrangements. Today is the anniversary of the UN vote on resolution 181, which approved the partition of the western part of Palestine into a predominately Jewish state and a predominately Arab state. Not only does this resolution establish the right of Israel to exist, it equally provided a framework by which both Jews and Arabs could live on the same, relatively small, plot of land. The rejection of the Arab world of this resolution is crucial in understanding of where we are today. Of course, you might wonder if in retrospect the Palestinians shouldn’t have accepted the deal for it gave them far more land then ever was on the table during the peace process that was established by the Oslo Accords. Resolution 181 will probably never be implemented in terms of carving up the land, but it establishes a benchmark against which further negotiations will be held. If we reduce the UN to irrelevance then 181 will equally lose its status, affecting both the Israeli and Palestinian cases and the potential for a long term solution. As a strong supporter of UN reform we should ensure that whatever we do with this institution, we should salvage the bits and pieces that did make the UN a relevant entity.