Universal Postal Union UPU

(UPU), an international, intergovernmental organization; a specialized institution of the UN since 1947. The UPU was formed in 1874 at the First International Postal Congress; until 1878 it was called the General Union of Posts. Russia was one of its founders.

The goals of the UPU, according to the 1964 edition of its regulations (constitution), are to ensure the organization and carrying out of postal services, encourage the development of international cooperation in this field, and give technical aid to developing countries in organizing and implementing postal services. The members of the organization form a unified postal territory for the mutual exchange of various kinds of correspondence, ensure the free transit of correspondence across their territories, and apply uniform postal rates to similar kinds of postal correspondence. In addition to governments, some international organizations may partici-pate in the UPU. On Jan. 1, 1971, there were 143 governments and territories in the UPU. The USSR has participated in the organization since 1924.

The main bodies of the UPU are the International Postal Congress, the Executive Council, the Advisory Council for Postal Research, and the International Bureau. The congress, the highest body of the UPU, consists of representatives of all members of the UPU and convenes, as a rule, once every five years. (Between 1874 and 1971, 15 congresses were held.) The Executive Council, which was established at the fourteenth congress of the UPU (Vienna, 1964), consists of 31 members elected by the congress for five-year terms. The Advisory Council, founded in 1957, is made up of 30 members elected by the congress for five-year terms; it conducts research and gives advice on technical, operational, and economic questions about postal services. The International Bureau is the permanent secretariat of the UPU. The official language of the organization is French; working languages are Russian, English, and Spanish. Among the UPU’s publications are the journal The Postal Union and accounts of its congresses.