United Nations

UN Aerospace Army's 3^rd Fleet and the XG-70d Susanoo IV in background.

Flag of UN

The United Nations, or UN, is an international organization comprised of almost every nation that currently exists on Earth, and serves as a means of facilitating international cooperation between countries in almost all subjects and concerns.

In the world of Unlimited/Alternative, their primary role is to serve as a common front where troops from various nations can cooperate on the battlefield, and to lead international efforts in the war against the BETA. The UN also coordinates humanitarian efforts for people displaced by the BETA threat, and has even spearheaded several military projects to improve the fighting strength of the world's militaries.

History

The United Nations was first formed following the end of World War II in Allied victory to allow various nations to work towards international cooperation. The UN's first major involvement in world events was when it formed the special duty research organization "Dignified 12" to facilitate cross-species communication efforts after the Viking I spacecraft landed at Mars and discovered extraterrestrial life. In 1966, the Dignified 12 were re-organized into the Alternative Plan (presumably what was to become Alternative I) to begin studying and understand the extraterrestrial life discovered by Viking I. At this time, the UN did not possess any military power of its own.

The earliest existence of a United Nations Armed Forces was during the 1967 BETA Invasion of Luna, when such a force was organized in order to face the BETA threat on the Moon, based on Article 43 of the United Nations Charter. When the BETA threat reached Earth in 1973, the UN Forces shifted their attention to creating a united front where humanity could strike back against the BETA.

Following China and the Soviet Union's refusal for UN assistance, and the subsequent defeats suffered by mankind's forces against the BETA in Central Asia, the United Nations Joint Chiefs of Staff held a conference in 1979 in Vancouver to re-organize the UN Forces for greater strategic effectiveness. At that time, the only military power the United Nations had were in the form of borrowed troops from other nations; the UN could only direct overall mission command during a UN operation, and had no say over the finer details of managing a standing armed force. The 1979 UN Chief of Staff Conference's purpose, which eventually resulted in the Vancover Agreement, was to create a more cohesive armed effort to defeat the BETA.

Despite the Vancouver Agreement, the UN could still only borrow troops from other nations, which proved to be a time-consuming process when entire nations began to fall to the BETA. With the remnants of their governments and armed forces forced into exile, these homeless troops were quickly integrated into the small but growing United Nations Force as drafted by the UNCSC. It was hoped that the uniting of several military forces under a combined banner would help in preventing the BETA from advancing further than they already had, and prevent international politics from impeding the combined defensive effort.

A UN Type-94 Shiranui engaging BETA.

Initially, permanent members of the UN Security Council included the United States, United Kingdom, France, the Soviet Union, and China. In 1987, Australia and the Empire of Japan joined as permanent members of the UN Security Council, but with their right of veto frozen for the next 20 years, thus bringing the total up to seven.

Over the years, the UN has led many operations against the BETA with varying degrees of success. Two of their more prominent multinational efforts include the Alternative Plans and Project PROMINENCE. However, despite the consolidation of numerous national militaries into a single entity, the UN Armed Force are far from infallible. The logistics and organizational problems that come with running a large entity are accentuated many times when it comes to planning for a large operation, and like most armies, not all personnel in the UN are competent in what they are assigned to do.

As of 2001, the UN Force is involved in 6 theaters of war (Atlantic, Pacific, Mediterranean, European, Indian, and Antartic regions), with 3 million personnel involved across the globe in all three branches of the UN Armed Force. Currently, the UN Force is undergoing a long-term effort to re-structure the entire force in preparation for counter-offensive operations against the BETA on the European and mainland Asian continents.

Unlimited/The Day After

The failure of the UN to complete Alternative IV resulted in support being shifted to Alternative V instead. Humanity continued to hold against the BETA until the 23^rd of February, 2003, when Operation Babylon was initiated, leading to the chain of events known as The Day.

Information is sketchy, with heavy suggestion of the UN having been annihilated in the chaos that followed. The UN Aerospace Force took the heaviest hit, having moved almost their entire personnel force into space to follow through with the mass orbital dive that was to follow the G-bombing. When communications and equipment were damaged following The Day, all orbital forces were cut off from support elements from the Earth's surface, and were unable to land or receive supplies due to equipment failure and loss of command structure on the Earth's surface. Much of the UN's personnel information database was completely erased, making it impossible to accurately track troop movement and numbers.

In the aftermath of the Four Country Conference and the ensuing peace negotiations in 2006, the four countries of the United States of America, Japan, France, and Canada form the New United Nations. Future collaborative efforts between the countries are put under UN jurisdiction, such as the attack on the JFK Hive.

Alternative

2001 saw the involvement of the UN 11^th Force involved with several major operations in the Empire of Japan; the Invasion of Niigata, the 12/5 Incident, Operation 21^st, the subsequent Defence of Yokohama Base, and finally the UN's largest counteroffensive operation to date, Operation Ouka; all were made possible with the UN's achievements with Alternative IV. Following its success, the UN was involved in organizing retaliatory strikes against the BETA across the world; examples include Operation Sledgehammer, on the 10^th of April, 2003.

Organization

Governing Body

The United Nations is an international organization as opposed to a national entity. As such, the UN's decisions are decided by a council comprised of representatives from the nations that make up the entirety of the UN.

Force Command

UN lapel pins for identification of an individual's rank.

While the United Nations does not posses its own armed forces, troops from other nations can be placed under its command. Depending on their mission, such a deployment can either last from days to decades on end. Under Chapter 7, Section 43 of the Charter of the United Nations, all member nations are obligated to provide troops to the United Nations in the war effort. Command of such assets are under the scope of the UN Security Council, which are advised by a Military Staff Committee comprised of the member states of the Council. Like any conventional armed forces, the UN arranges its military assets into air, sea, land, and (whenever possible) space forces.

The United Nations possess its own logistic branch, as well as research and development facilities; the various BETA research facilities underneath Yukon Base and Yokohama Base are examples, as are the Alternative Plans.

Apart from frontline duty, UN troops are also deployed as peacekeepers in refugee zones, and the status of the world's refugees also falls under the UN's responsibilities. However, such security troops can only be deployed if the nation hosting the refugees so allows. The United States, United Kingdom and Taiwan do not allow the UN to deploy security troops in their nations, instead using their own military forces to enforce order.

Non-Permanent

The United Nations Armed Force has varying degrees of control over the personnel under them. The first is the deployment of at least an operational unit from a host nation's armed forces under the banner of the UN, following the historical methods of the UN "borrowing" troops from other nations to fulfill its objectives; because of these units also legally belong to their host country and can be called upon as such anytime, they often take the form of naval fleets for various logistics reasons.

Under such a command, the UN has overall control over these troops and can move them as required in combat operations, but otherwise has little say in the long-term prospects of said unit(s). Such units can be either on long-term loan (JA44 Zerberus Bataillon and the UN Pacific Fleet), or for the duration of just one operation (the Imperial Navy's 17^th Tactical Armored Unit in Operation Sledgehammer). By 2001, virtually every nation has at one point or another loaned a unit to the UN.

Quasi-Permanent

An F-15E Strike Eagle of the 6^th Orbital Diver Corps.

Another command type the UN practices is a quasi-permanent authority. Personnel included under this plan, from soldiers to civilian attaches, still retain their nationality, but will only take orders from the United Nations and no other source. While equipment is provided by the providing/host country, they are given UN markings, UN identification codes and colors, and represent the UN when on the field. Included in this is the UN Aerospace Force, which has personnel on long-term standby that are replaced through duty rotation or reinforcements. Troops stationed on the defense lines under the UN, as well as those of the Alternative Plans, are also under this category.

Permanent Command

The last type of command the UN has over its forces is a permanent command. Forces under this authority are bound to the UN and its rules of operation for as long as the UN requires, and can be deployed in any situation as the UN sees fit to do so, essentially acting as an independent force. Units under this command type are usually from small nations driven out of their homelands by the BETA; being the UN's sole independent assets, pilots of such units often find themselves deployed in more dangerous situations than their counterparts in other militaries due to UN decision to send them on more decisive missions. As a result, these nations feel that they are being made use of, and several have formed their own organization to counter this effect.

Armed Forces

United Nations Army Badge (Wings)

United Nations Army Patch

UN troops, regardless of their type of command under the UN, can be seen stationed on almost every front of the world where they often take part in combat operations alongside their host country. If the UF Forces were an actual standing military, their equipment would be the most varied on Earth, encompassing at least a generation of Soviet, United States, Japanese, and European equipment.

United Nations Force

UN Army F-16 Fighting Falcons.

The UN Force is a self-sufficient military, from logistics, supply transport via naval/aerial means, research and training to force allocation and other tertiary needs. For a comprehensive list of UN Force units hosted at various bases, refer to the United Nations Force Bases list.

Directly listed below are UN provisional forces not part of the regular UN Forces, or do not have a specific operating zone.

Sicily Defence Line

Also known as the Sicily Absolute Defence Line, this location in Italy is part of the Mediterranean theater of combat and is one of the forefronts of the war against the BETA in Europe. It serves as the primary location from which regular anti-BETA raids and herd-thinning operations are launched by Italian forces.

Reggio Calabria Command Post

• United Nations/Euro Fightas Contingent, Rain Dancers Squadron

A special squadron, put together to test the limits of the ECTSF.

DANCCT

Hosted at the Mont Saint-Michel Fortress offshore Normady, France, DANCCT is a multinational training exercise comprised of forces from several different nations.

• Franco-German Special Forces Unit Mulhouse

A combination of French and German forces operating from the fortress that specialize in herd-thinning operations across the European mainland.

United Nations Aerospace Force

The UN Aerospace Force is in charge of all UN space-based assets, the most well-known being the Orbital Divers, TSF pilots assigned to the dangerous task of assaulting a Hive by dropping through the atmosphere to reach ground zero. Also included in the Aerospace Force are the UN Orbital Fleet and Orbital Defence Fleet, the latter of which are in charge of operating both the nuclear-armed SHADOW satellite network and various reconnaissance satellites.

Edwards Space Base, California

6^th Orbital Diver Corps

• Aquila Squadron

An Orbital Diver squadron commanded by Lieutenant Henri Gischen.

3^rd HSST Fleet

• HSST Neustrashimyy
• HSST Sawarabi
• HSST Yunagi
• HSST Eilat
• HSST Shiloh
• HSST La Fayette

United Nations Integrated Navy

The UN maintains a naval force to provide additional firepower in anti-BETA operations, and to augment the fighting forces of the navies of other nations.

United Nations Pacific Fleet

Notable for being a fleet that consists solely of Iowa-class battleships of the US Navy.

• USS Iowa
• USS New Jersey
• USS Missouri
• USS Illinois
• USS Kentucky

11^th Fleet

Stationed at Yokosuka Base of the Imperial Navy.

Trivia

• The named HSSTs of the UN Aerospace Force's 3^rd HSST Fleet are named after actual historical warships. Neustrashimyy (Russian: Неустрашимый, mean "Fearless" ) can refer to either a cancelled 1950s Soviet prototype or the modern frigate class of the same name, Sawarabi was named after one of the Japanese Empire's Wakatake-class destroyers, and Yunagi was the ninth Kamikaze-class destroyer built.
• Eilat was a name used for several Israel warships, Shiloh was a name used for two different types of warships and the La Fayette can either refer to the the well-known French stealth frigate type or other vessels of the same name.
• In the Total Eclipse anime adaptation's translations, the term "Ensign" was inaccurately used to describe the rank of many of the UN test pilots in the series, regardless of nationality or affiliation. Traditionally, Ensign is used to describe a junior officer in some Western navies, and is only ever associated with naval aviators.
  • The more accurate term used by most militaries in the Muv-Luv universe, including the UN, is the 2^nd Lieutenant: an equivalent junior officer rank that is used in most real-life armies. The superior rank is often abbreviated to simply Lieutenant, although it can also be described as 1^st Lieutenant.
    • The Imperial Japanese Navy actually uses the Ensign rank, and it is equal in rank to a 2^nd Lieutenant in the Imperial Japanese Army. They even share the same term, Shōi (少尉), with the only differentiation being in the preceding term Rikugun (Army) and Kaigun (Navy).