United Nations - New York Headquarters (3)

NEW YORK
United Nations Headquarters in New York.

sent by Oleg, a postcrosser from New York City, USA.

Austria - United Nations Office In Vienna

VIENNA
International Centre (UNO-City).

Sent by Anita, a postcrosser from Graz in Austria.

This is from Wikipedia : The United Nations Office in Vienna (UNOV) is one of the four major UN office sites where several different UN agencies have a joint presence. The office complex is located in Vienna, the capital of Austria, and is part of the Vienna International Centre, a cluster of several major international organizations. The UNOV was established on 1 January 1980, and was the third such office established.

USA - New York - United Nations - Security Council Chamber

UNITED NATIONS
Security Council Chamber

Sent by Matt, a postcrosser from Chicago, USA.

This is from Wikipedia : The designated Security Council Chamber in the United Nations Conference Building, designed by the Norwegian architect Arnstein Arneberg, was the specific gift of Norway. The mural painted by the Norwegian artist Per Krohg depicts a phoenix rising from its ashes, symbolic of the world reborn after World War II. In the blue and gold silk tapestry on the walls and in the draperies of the windows overlooking the East River appear the anchor of faith, the wheat stems of hope, and the heart of charity.[

United Nations - Headquarters in New York (2)

United Nations Headquarters, New York.

Sent by Megan from New York. Thanks for the stamp postmarked at the UN Headquarters.

USA - New York - United Nations - Headquarters (1)

UNITED NATIONS - New York CityWas founded in 1954 and now has 192 member countries.

Sent by Hannah, a postcrosser from USA.

This is from Wikipedia : The headquarters of the United Nations is a distinctive complex in New York City, United States, that has served as the official headquarters of the United Nations since its completion in 1952. It is located in the Turtle Bay neighborhood of Manhattan, on spacious grounds overlooking the East River. Its borders are First Avenue on the west, East 42nd Street to the south, East 48th Street on the north and the East River to the east. Turtle Bay is used as a synonym for the U.N. headquarters or for the U.N. as a whole.

The United Nations has three additional, subsidiary, regional headquarters or headquarter districts. These are located in Geneva (Switzerland), Vienna (Austria), and Nairobi (Kenya). These adjunct offices help represent UN interests, facilitate diplomatic activities, and enjoy certain extraterritorial privileges, but only the main headquarters in New York contains the seats of the principal organs of the UN, including the General Assembly and Security Council. All 15 of the United Nation's specialized agencies are located outside New York at these other headquarters or in other cities.

Though it is in New York City, and part of the United States, the land used by the United Nations Headquarters is considered international territory, while also being subject to most local, state, and federal laws. For award purposes Amateur radio operators consider it a separate "entity", and for communications the UN has its own internationally recognized ITU prefix, 4U.

The FDR Drive passes underneath the Conference Building of the complex.

The United Nations Headquarters complex was constructed in New York City in 1949 and 1950 beside the East River, on 17 acres (69,000 m2) of land purchased from the foremost New York real estate developer of the time, William Zeckendorf. Nelson Rockefeller arranged this purchase, after an initial offer to locate it on the Rockefeller family estate of Kykuit was rejected as being too isolated from Manhattan. The $8.5 million purchase was then funded by his father, John D. Rockefeller, Jr., who donated it to the City. The lead architect for the building was the real estate firm of Wallace Harrison, the personal architectural adviser for the family.

Korean Peninsula - Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)

The vehicle that takes down to the tunnel North Korea built under the DMZ.

Sent by Russell, a postcrosser from New Zealand. This postcard was sent from Shemzen in China.

This is from Wikipedia : The Korean Demilitarized Zone (Korean: 한반도 비무장지대) is a strip of land running across the Korean Peninsula that serves as a buffer zone between North and South Korea. The DMZ cuts the Korean Peninsula roughly in half, crossing the 38th parallel on an angle, with the west end of the DMZ lying south of the parallel and the east end lying north of it. It is 250 kilometres (160 miles) long, approximately 4 km (2.5 mi) wide and is the most heavily militarized border in the world. The Northern Limit Line, or NLL, is the de facto maritime boundary between North and South Korea in the Yellow Sea and the coastline and islands on both sides of the NLL are also heavily militarized.

The 38th parallel north—which cuts the Korean Peninsula roughly in half—was the original boundary between the US-occupied and Soviet-occupied areas of Korea at the end of World War II. Upon the creation of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK, informally North Korea) and the Republic of Korea (ROK, informally South Korea) in 1948, it became a de facto international border and one of the most tense fronts in the Cold War.

Both the North and the South remained heavily dependent on their sponsor states from 1948 to the outbreak of the Korean War. The conflict, which claimed over three million lives and divided the Korean Peninsula along ideological lines, commenced on June 25, 1950, with a Soviet-sponsored DPRK invasion across the 38th parallel, and ended in 1953 after international intervention pushed the front of the war back to near the 38th parallel. In the Armistice Agreement of July 27, 1953, the DMZ was created as each side agreed to move their troops back 2,000 m (2,200 yards) from the front line, creating a buffer zone 4 km (2.5 mi) wide. The Military Demarcation Line (MDL) goes down the center of the DMZ and indicates exactly where the front was when the agreement was signed.

Owing to this theoretical stalemate, and genuine hostility between the North and the South, large numbers of troops are still stationed along both sides of the line, each side guarding against potential aggression from the other side. The armistice agreement explains exactly how many military personnel and what kind of weapons are allowed in the DMZ. Soldiers from both sides may patrol inside the DMZ, but they may not cross the MDL. Sporadic outbreaks of violence due to North Korean hostilities killed over 500 South Korean soldiers and 50 U.S. soldiers along the DMZ between 1953 and 1999.

Tae Sung Dong and Kijong-dong were the only villages allowed by the armistice committee to remain within the boundaries of the DMZ. Residents of Tae Sung Dong are governed and protected by the United Nations Command and are generally required to spend at least 240 nights per year in the village to maintain their residency. In 2008, the village had a population of 218 people. The villagers of Tae Sung Dong are direct descendants of people who owned the land before the 1950-53 Korean War.

United Nations - ESCAP

United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.

Sent by Patt, a postcrosser from Thailand.

This is from Wikipedia : The Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP or ESCAP), located in Bangkok, Thailand, is the regional arm of the United Nations Secretariat for the Asian and Pacific region. It was established in 1947 (then as the UN Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East - ECAFE) to encourage economic cooperation among its member states. The name was changed to the current in 1974. It is one of five regional commissions under the administrative direction of United Nations headquarters. The ESCAP has 53 member States and nine Associate members, and reports to the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). As well as countries in Asia and the Pacific, it includes France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States. The ESCAP is headed by Executive Secretary Noeleen Heyzer of Singapore. Ms. Heyzer is the first woman to head ESCAP, which is the biggest of the UN's five regional commissions, both in terms of population served and area covered.

Fifty-three countries are members of ESCAP, and there are nine countries which are associate members. ESCAP's regional focus is managing globalization through programs in environmentally sustainable development, trade, and human rights.