Book excerpt: 'Through a combination of narrative and key historical documents, this Special Edition of the Yearbook offers a picture of the United Nations' extraordinary achievements over the past fifty years', observes Secretary-General of the UN, Dr Boutros Boutros-Ghali in his Foreword to the book. Fully indexed, this Special Edition of the Yearbook recounts the early initiatives that led to the adoption of the Charter of the UN on 25 June 1945 at San Francisco. It captures the major issues and more, and highlights the lasting milestones of the 50 years of UN history, projecting the imperatives of the organization into the next century.