The United Nations was conceived and born in the crucible of WWII. As one of the main theaters of the war and a key member of the world anti-fascist alliance, China made outstanding contributions to the global victory over fascism, earning its place among the victorious powers. China took an active part in the deliberation, planning, and establishment of the United Nations, playing a significant role in drafting the UN Charter and shaping the new organization. As a result, China became both a sponsoring country and a founding member of the UN, as well as a permanent member of its Security Council.

Unique contributions to UN’s establishment

On Aug. 14, 1941, US and British leaders signed the Atlantic Charter, proposing the establishment of a “wider and permanent system of general security”—the embryonic vision of the United Nations. With Japan’s full-scale invasion of China exposing the League of Nations’ ineffectiveness, China strongly endorsed this new international organization, hoping it could effectively deter aggression and preserve peace. China also pressed to supplement the Atlantic Charter with the principles of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, addressing its shortcomings.

On Jan. 1, 1942, 26 Allied nations issued the Declaration by United Nations, adopting the aims of the Atlantic Charter as their common program. This document laid the groundwork for the United Nations—its very name derived from the declaration. As a signatory and one of the four core Allied powers, China played a pivotal role. The Chinese government, deeply invested in shaping the postwar order, drafted a convention on an international association of nations, systematically outlining the principles, structure, and operations of the proposed body. This marked China’s first policy blueprint for the creation of the United Nations.

On Oct. 30, 1943, a historic milestone was achieved when the foreign ministers of China, the United States, the Soviet Union, and Britain signed the Declaration of the Four Nations on General Security in Moscow. This document marked the first formal commitment by the major Allied powers to establish a postwar international organization dedicated to maintaining world peace and security—laying the constitutional cornerstone for what would become the United Nations.

Subsequent high-level discussions at the Cairo Conference [November 1943] and Tehran Conference [November–December 1943] enabled the four nations to exchange views on the new organization’s framework. The pivotal Dumbarton Oaks Conference, held from August to October 1944, then produced the “Proposals for the Establishment of a General International Organization,” which formed the draft of the UN Charter and provided a solid basis for the constitutional conference in San Francisco.

At Dumbarton Oaks, the Chinese delegation submitted the “Essential Points in the Charter of an International Organization,” systematically articulating China’s principles and advancing seven substantive proposals. Three of these were incorporated into the UN Charter, later known as the “Chinese Proposals.” These included: the settlement of international disputes in accordance with the principles of justice and international law; the General Assembly shall initiate studies and make recommendations for the purpose of encouraging the progressive development of international law and its codification; and the Economic and Social Council shall promote international educational and cultural cooperation.

These contributions—rooted in China’s advocacy for weaker nations—represent the nation’s distinctive intellectual legacy in the UN’s founding architecture.

First nation to sign the UN Charter

As one of the four sponsoring nations and conference co-chairs, China played a central role in the historic United Nations Conference on International Organization held in San Francisco from April 25, 1945, the core agendas of which were the formulation of the UN Charter and the official establishment of the United Nations. In accordance with the Yalta Agreement, the diverse Chinese delegation included CPC representative Dong Biwu, along with nine other representatives from various political and social sectors.

The Secretariat of the UN General Assembly received 1,200 amendments proposed by 36 nations. China’s major proposals on rights of non-UN member states and the geographical distribution of non-permanent Security Council seats were inscribed into the final Charter. These unique contributions to the United Nations as a universal, representative, and authoritative international organization reflected China’s commitment to amplifying the voices of smaller nations, ensuring equitable representation, and stressing sovereign equality and the independence of states.

On June 25, 1945, the assembly unanimously adopted the UN Charter and Statute of the International Court of Justice. The next day, on June 26, delegates from 50 nations—totaling 153 representatives—gathered at the San Francisco War Memorial Veterans Building to sign the Charter. This day was subsequently designated as “UN Charter Day.” The delegates signed all five official language versions of the Charter: Chinese, English, Russian, French, and Spanish. Observing the alphabetical order of the four sponsoring countries, China was the first nation to sign.

Following ratification by the five permanent UN Security Council members and a majority of signatories, the Charter entered into force on Oct. 24—now commemorated as United Nations Day. Consisting of 19 chapters and 111 articles, the UN Charter established the bedrock of the postwar international order.

Zhang Guihong is director of the Center for the Study of the United Nations and International Organizations at Fudan University.