Critically assess the extent to which it can be said that United Nations General Assembly Resolutions are sources if international law - Essay Example

Is it true that the resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly are not legally binding3? The objective of the essay is therefore to study and analyze the extent to which United Nations General Assembly resolutions can be considered as source for international law. The essay broadly discusses the positive arguments regarding the extent of source of UN General Assembly resolutions in the form of Charter of UN, International Law Commission, International Court of Justice, UN Commission on International Trade Law.

It is followed by discussion on legal binding nature of UN resolutions on nations leading to a valid conclusion. Let us first examine the clauses of United Nations General Assembly resolutions that become guideline or source for international law. Since its inception in 1945, the UN General Assembly has adopted several resolutions4. These resolutions articulate notions related to international law. International law is a primary objective of the United Nations. The base for the legal activities originate from the Charter of the United Nations5.

The Preamble of the Charter of the United Nations declares its goal as ‘establishing conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained6. Hence, United Nations resolutions can be considered as main source for international law7. The primary objective of International Law Commission is "to promote the progressive development of international law and its codification" as mentioned in its Article 1 of the Statute10.

This means United Nations General Assembly resolution serves as a major source for international law. Moreover, depending upon the need, the Statute was amended by the General Assembly several times so that its effectiveness in addressing the legal issues of the world is taken care11. The International Court of Justice, one of the six major organs of the United Nations