The United Nations General Assembly Resolution 500 was approved on May 18, 1951, recommending a
trade embargo on the
People’s Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the second-most populous country after India, representing 17.4% of the world population. China spans the e ...
and
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...
, in response to the intervention of Chinese troops in
Korean War
The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...
.
Background
In late 1950, hundreds of thousands of Chinese troops crossed into North Korea to help the troops of North Korea to fight the coalition led by United States and South Korea.
On February 1, 1951, the
United Nations General Assembly Resolution 498 was passed, condemning the aggression of the People's Republic of China.
This was followed by Report A/1802 of the
United Nations General Assembly First Committee
The United Nations General Assembly First Committee (also known as the Disarmament and International Security Committee or DISEC or C1) is one of six main committees at the General Assembly of the United Nations. It deals with disarmament and in ...
, containing the draft resolution which was considered by the General Assembly at its 330th plenary meeting on May 18, 1951; the resolution was passed with 47 votes to nil, with 8 abstentions and 5 nations not voting.
The resolution in summary
The resolution recommended that all nations impose a trade embargo of weapons, ammunition and implements of war, as well as the means of their productions, along with atomic energy materials, petroleum, and transportation of strategic value, to areas under the control of the
Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China
The State Council of the People's Republic of China, also known as the Central People's Government, is the chief administrative authority and national cabinet. It is constitutionally the highest administrative organ of the country and the e ...
and of the
Government of North Korea
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
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The voting in detail
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Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
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Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
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Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
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Yemen
Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...
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Against
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Abstentions
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Burma
Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...
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Syria
Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
Present Not Voting
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Aftermath
The trade embargo imposed by the resolution forced the People’s Republic of China to rely on economic assistances from the
Eastern Bloc
The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc (Combloc), the Socialist Bloc, the Workers Bloc, and the Soviet Bloc, was an unofficial coalition of communist states of Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America that were a ...
, and later on economic self-sufficiency. Meanwhile, the embargo forced the then-British Colony of
Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
to transition its economy, from an
entrepôt
An entrepôt ( ; ) or transshipment port is a port, city, or trading post where merchandise may be imported, stored, or traded, usually to be exported again. Such cities often sprang up and such ports and trading posts often developed into comm ...
between China and the West, to an exporter of
locally manufactured goods.
After the
Korean Armistice Agreement
The Korean Armistice Agreement (; zh, t=韓國停戰協定 / 朝鮮停戰協定) is an armistice that brought about a cessation of hostilities of the Korean War. It was signed by United States Army Lieutenant General William Kelly Harrison Jr ...
in 1953, nations gradually lifted their trade embargo against the People’s Republic of China; for the United States, the lifting of the embargo was announced by President
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
in 1971.
See also
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United Nations General Assembly resolution
A United Nations General Assembly resolution is a decision or declaration voted on by all member states of the United Nations in the United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly.
General Assembly resolutions usually require a simple majority ...
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United Nations Security Council resolution
References
{{reflist
05/500
Korean War
1951 in the United Nations
May 1951
Korea and the United Nations
China and the United Nations