With reference to the “United Nations Credentials Committee”, consider the following statements:
- 1.It is a committee set up by the UN Security Council and works under its supervision.
- 2.It traditionally meets in March, June and September every year.
- 3.It assesses the credentials of all UN members before submitting a report to the General Assembly for approval.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (a) 3 only
Only statement 3 is right: the Credentials Committee checks the credentials of member states' representatives and reports to the General Assembly. It is a body of the General Assembly, not of the Security Council, and the Assembly's rules give it no fixed March–June–September calendar.
- ✗ 1. The Committee is appointed by the General Assembly, on the President's proposal, at the beginning of each session. It has no link to the Security Council.
- ✗ 2. Rule 28 of the Assembly's rules of procedure only says the Committee is appointed at the start of each session, and the UN's own notes say its members are traditionally appointed at the first plenary meeting. No UN page gives a March, June and September meeting calendar.
- ✓ 3. The Committee has nine members and examines the credentials that delegations submit, then reports to the Assembly, which acts on the report.
Remember · The UN Credentials Committee is a nine-member General Assembly committee, appointed each session, that examines delegates' credentials and reports to the Assembly.
Sources
- UN General Assembly, Rules of procedure, IV. Credentials (Rule 28) ↗ “A Credentials Committee shall be appointed at the beginning of each session. It shall consist of nine members, who shall be appointed by the General Assembly on the proposal of the President.”
- UN General Assembly, Background ↗ “The Credentials Committee, appointed by the General Assembly at each session, reports to the Assembly on the credentials of representatives.”
- UN General Assembly, Credentials Committee ↗ “The Committee is mandated to examine the credentials of representatives of Member States and to report to the General Assembly thereon”
- UN General Assembly, Opening of the 62nd session (background) ↗ “The members of the Committee are traditionally appointed at the 1st plenary meeting, on the proposal of the President.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). ·