We need effective international institutions to respond on the scale needed to tackle the global issues facing us.

The United Nation (UN) and the European Union (EU), along with other assemblies, provide vital platforms for acting together with international partners. These include the G8, Commonwealth, Council of Europe (CoE), Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and Nato (the North Atlantic Treaty Organization).

For effective international action on global issues, we must ensure we continue to develop the effectiveness of these institutions. We aim to:

• promote an international system able to meet the opportunities and challenged of globalisation
• work for an effective, efficient, responsive and representative international system based on core values
• promote a European Union that delivers for its citizens in response to global challenges.

We are also working within these institutions with our international partners to progress all our policy goals.

United Nations (UN)

Having promoted the first ever UN Security Council debate on climate change,we are working to make sure that the Security Council continues to meets its responsibilities in response to threats to international peace and security. This includes responding to events in specific countries.

We are working to boost international collective actions to meet the Millennium Development Goals targets by 2015. We will continue to play a key role in building international support in the run-up to the high-level meeting called for by the UN General Secretary-General and the President of the General Assembly on 25 September 2008.

European Union (EU)

The European Union (EU) is uniquely placed to respond to the challenges facing the world in the 21st century - with its 27 member states, a population of over 490 million, as well as the largest single market in the world.

Through the EU, individual countries can make a greater impact on issues that demand international solutions. These include climate change, energy security, development and conflict prevention.

The UK is committed to a vision of an open, fair and competitive Europe, that:

• delivers for its citizens
• works effectively with its international partners to address global challenges.

In 2008, the EU:

• committed itself to ambitious targets for the reduction of carbon emissions
• committed to double development assistance to €66 billion euros by 2010
• deployed its largest ever civilian mission, to Kosovo. They join other EU missions supporting the rule of law around the world, including Palestine to Afghanistan.     

Find out more about the UK and the European Union.