Act of Creation: The Founding of the United Nations

(Paperback)

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The dramatic unfolding of how, against seemingly hopeless odds at the end of World War II, the most important international organization in the world, the United Nations, came to be The pivotal and little-known story of how Secretary of State Edward Stettinius and the new American President, Harry Truman, picked up the pieces of the shattered campaign initiated by Franklin Roosevelt to create a 'United Nations.' Using secret agents, financial resources, and their unrivaled position of power, they overcame the intrigues of Stalin, the reservations of wartime allies like Winston Churchill, the discontent of smaller states, and a skeptical press corps to found the United Nations. The author reveals how the UN nearly collapsed several times during the conference over questions of which states should have power, who should be admitted, and how authority should be divided among its branches. By shedding new light on leading participants like John Foster Dulles, John F. Kennedy, Adlai Stevenson, Nelson Rockefeller, and E. B White, Act of Creation provides a fascinating tale of twentieth-century history.

Reviews

"'[Schlesinger's] detailed account of the scheming, skullduggery and political horse-trading behind the creation of the UN is a timely reminder of what the organization's founders expected it to become'. The Economist"

Author Bio

Stephen Schlesinger is Director of the World Policy Institute at the New School University in New York City. In the mid-1990s, he worked at the United Nations, and also served as New York Governor Mario Cuomo's foreign policy advisor for twelve years. He is a frequent contributor to magazines and newspapers, including the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, The Nation, and the New York Observer.