Deck 5: Global and Regional Intergovernmental Organizations

Question 1

Members of the European Parliament today are directly elected by citizens of the EU's member states and have the power to overturn acts of the European Commission.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Government debt and deficit spending are considered among the most serious economic problems facing the EU.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The League of Nations was written into the Versailles Treaty as the first of its 440 articles.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Under Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld peacekeeping and preventative security replaced collective security as the UN's main approach to global security.

Question 5

NGOs and IGOs tend not to work together on international policies and programs.

Question 6

The United States has been eager to expand the permanent membership of the Security Council as long as the additional members are U.S.allies.

Question 7

The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development or World Bank was originally established to aid in the rebuilding effort after World War I.

Question 8

The United Nations Charter defines one of the UN's objectives as cultivating respect for the principle of equal rights and the self determination of peoples.

Question 9

The Security Council of the United Nations includes five permanent members with veto power and ten additional rotating members.

Question 10

The UN is the best known of all IGOs.

Question 11

IGOs are established by formal international agreements between two or more states.

Question 12

The United Nations is an example of a "universal membership" IGO.

Question 13

Japan pays a larger percentage of the UN budget than any other permanent Security Council member, with the exception of the United States, and yet is still excluded from the Security Council.

Question 14

The EU's key policymaking body is the European Commission.

Question 15

The members of intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) are private individuals and groups.

Question 16

Although technically, the World Trade Organization (WTO) violates the international norm of nonintervention, its members have voluntarily surrendered some of their sovereignty under the assumption that it would produce greater gains than losses.

Question 17

The United States is the largest contributor to the UN.

Question 18

One of the purposes of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is to serve as a lender of last resort for countries experiencing financial crisis.

Question 19

European integration began with the establishment of the European Economic Community in 1957.

Question 20

The founders of the UN expected the General Assembly to be the organization's primary body.

Question 21

The key to successful collective security organization includes

A)universal participation.
B)consensus on the existence of threats to peace.
C)commitment to take action against aggressors.
D)All of the above are key to successful collective security.
E)Both options a and c are key.

Question 22

Which of the following is an objective of the UN?

A)Maintaining international peace and security
B)Functioning as a center for harmonizing the actions of nations
C)Encouraging respect for human rights and freedoms
D)Respecting equal rights and self-determination of peoples
E)All of the above are objectives of the UN.

Question 23

Which of the following has the UN promoted to pursue world peace in addition to collective security?

A)Peacekeeping
B)Preventative diplomacy
C)Peacemaking
D)Peace building
E)All of the above are true.

Question 24

Which of the following is an autonomous specialized agency affiliated with the UN?

A)WHO
B)ILO
C)UNESCO
D)All of the options are true.
E)Both options a and b are true.

Question 25

Which of the following is true of the World Bank?

A)It has a one state, one vote system.
B)Most of the Bank's loan funds are obtained from governments.
C)It loans money to states to help achieve currency-exchange stability.
D)It is unable to meet all the needs for financial assistance of the developing states.
E)It has a formal dispute settlement mechanism.

Question 26

The coalition of Global South members in the UN that promotes programs for poor countries is the

A)Non Aligned Movement.
B)General Assembly.
C)Group of 66.
D)Group of 77.
E)None of the above is true.

Question 27

Which of the following is not an organ of the UN?

A)International Court of Justice
B)Security Council
C)Secretariat
D)General Assembly
E)Council of Ministers

Question 28

Critics have been very critical of the International Monetary Fund because

A)it operates on a "one country, one vote" system.
B)it allocates loans with no conditions attached for improving economic practices.
C)it is opposed to privatization of state-owned enterprises.
D)it attaches strict conditions on its loans, forcing governments to cut spending on social programs.
E)its voting system is weighted to the advantage of the Global South countries.

Question 29

Which of the following is a characteristic of the World Trade Organization (WTO)?

A)It is a full-fledged intergovernmental organization with a formal decision-making structure.
B)It is mandated to manage disputes arising from its trading partners.
C)It is dominated by the great powers.
D)It developed from the notion that pooling state sovereignty would produce more gains than losses.
E)All of the above are characteristics of the WTO.

Question 30

Which of the following features did all of the original members of the UN Security Council have in common?

A)All were European nations.
B)All were victors in World War II.
C)All had the largest economies in the world.
D)Both a and b are true.
E)All of the options are true.

Question 31

The Maastricht Treaty, which created the foundations of the EU, was signed in

A)1989.
B)1991.
C)1992.
D)1996.
E)1999.

Question 32

Which of the following is not true of the European Union (EU)?

A)It began as a response to the widespread devastation of World War II.
B)The early organization centered on trade development.
C)It has eagerly pursued new membership in Eastern Europe and the Middle East.
D)There is division between Western and Eastern Europe raising the possibility of a split between two opposed coalitions.
E)It is headquartered in Brussels.

Question 33

Which of the following is not part of the UN's organizational structure?

A)General Assembly
B)Secretary General
C)Security Council
D)International Court of Justice
E)Secretariat

Question 34

Which of the following is not a permanent member of the UN Security Council?

A)The United States
B)Russia
C)Germany
D)France
E)Great Britain

Question 35

Which of the following is the main deliberative body in the UN?

A)General Assembly
B)Security Council
C)Secretary General
D)Economic and Social Council
E)Secretariat

Question 36

The members of nongovernmental organizations are

A)ethnopolitical groups.
B)states.
C)individuals.
D)multinational corporations.
E)All of the above are members of nongovernmental organizations.

Question 37

The agreement by European states to delegate some of their domestic decision-making power to the European Union is an example of

A)the nonintervention norm.
B)devolution.
C)realpolitik.
D)pooled sovereignty.
E)nationalism.

Question 38

Which of the following is true of the Security Council?

A)Its effectiveness was severely hampered during the Cold War due to the conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union.
B)It is made up of 15 permanent members and 5 nonpermanent members.
C)Resolutions must pass by a two-thirds majority.
D)Its primary responsibility is to coordinate the UN's social and economic programs.
E)All of the above are true.

Question 39

The origins of the idea of collective security as a basis of international peace can be traced to

A)Ancient Greece.
B)the Middle Ages.
C)the nineteenth century.
D)the twentieth century.
E)the twenty first century.

Question 40

What percent of the UN's total budget does the United States pay?

A)37 percent
B)50 percent
C)22 percent
D)75 percent
E)10 percent

Question 41

Some experts argue that the UN must be changed to accommodate changing world conditions, perhaps even be abolished.Present these various criticisms and possible ways to change the organization.What would be an alternative to the UN?

Question 42

Many experts argue that the world has changed dramatically since the UN Security Council was first created.Discuss the historical conditions that led to the creation of the UN Security Council.What changes in the world system would justify changing the membership of the UN Security Council.Should new countries be made members? If so which countries should be added?

Question 43

Which of the following is not a regional IGO?

A)NATO
B)ASEAN
C)WTO
D)ECOWAS
E)SADC

Question 44

Describe the way assessments are allocated among member nations of the United Nations.Compare and contrast the positions of the wealthy nations versus the poor nations on the issues of financing.Which argument do you find persuasive?

Question 45

Discuss the historical conditions that first led to the development of the League of Nations and then later the United Nations.What are the main differences between the League of Nations and the United Nations?

Question 46

Bill Clinton has stated: "We don't want to run off into the future all by ourselves.That means the United States will have to work responsibly through international organizations." Do you agree or disagree with Clinton's assessment? Can the United States "go it alone" or does it need to use international organizations? Use empirical evidence (referring to the utility of international organizations to solve global and state problems) to support your answer.

Question 47

The European Union could provide a successful model of political integration for other areas of the world.What is unique about the situation of the EU that led to its success? What challenges would similar organizations need to overcome to form such organizations?

Question 48

The European Court of Justice is different from other international tribunals because

A)its members are wealthier.
B)its comprises more members.
C)its decisions are binding.
D)its decisions reflect compromise.
E)its decisions are non-binding.

Question 49

The European Union has experienced severe economic problems in recent years.Identify these problems and present ways that the EU can address them.Are these problems so severe that they threaten the future of the EU?

Question 50

The UN is said to be a mirror of world politics, not an alternative to it.According to this view, the UN reflects the forces outside the organization that have animated world politics since World War II.Do you agree with this description of the UN? Cite evidence to support your position.

Question 51

Three neighboring countries that form a customs union would be an example of

A)an NGO.
B)a regional IGO.
C)a regional NGO.
D)a defense alliance.
E)None of the above is true.

Question 52

One of the criticisms of the EU's common currency policy is that it

A)hinders trade.
B)hinders investment.
C)increases transaction costs.
D)leads to a loss of country sovereignty.
E)All of the above are true.

Question 53

The IGO that is often called the "mirror of world politics" is the

A)League of Nations.
B)UN.
C)WTO.
D)NATO.
E)World Bank.

Question 54

The World Trade Organization, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund were each formed to deal with specific international economic issues.Explain the purpose of each organization and how effective it has been.Do these organizations infringe on state sovereignty?

Question 55

The World Trade Organization is one of the most influential IGOs in the world.Critics argue that its focus on free trade benefits rich industrial nations over poor raw material producers.Is there validity to this argument? What is the alternative to open trade for poor nations?