Basic Introduction

The Universal Postal Union (UPU), abbreviated as "UPU" or "PU", is an intergovernmental international organization that agrees on international postal affairs. Its predecessor was the "General Postal Union" established on October 9, 1874, and it was renamed to its current name in 1878.

Function Introduction

The Universal Postal Union sets international postal service standards and unifies international mail processing procedures and rates. Under the UPU system, the country of origin of the mail uses its own postal service to collect mail parcels. After the mail enters the destination country, the designated department of the destination country receives the international mail and delivers it in accordance with its domestic postal management regulations. In terms of fee settlement, the country of origin bears its own postal fees and pays fees to the post of the destination country. In 1969, the Universal Postal Union launched the "terminal fee system" to solve the problem of inconsistent fee standards caused by different postal operating costs in various destination countries. According to this system, international mail (including documents and items) not exceeding 4.4 pounds (about 2 kilograms) carried by the postal systems of each member country shall be paid a unified standard rate or fee by the postal operator of the country of origin to the postal operator of the destination country.

Founding Purpose

To organize and improve international postal services, develop international cooperation in the postal field, and provide postal technical assistance to member states as requested within its capabilities.

Organizational Structure

The Universal Postal Union is composed of the following sectors:

4 departments

Congress

Administrative Council

Postal Services Council

International Bureau

2 cooperation groups

Telematics Cooperation Group

Postal Express Delivery Cooperation Group

Congress

The Universal Postal Union Congress is the highest authority of the Universal Postal Union. It is composed of representatives of member countries and is usually held every five years. The Congress discusses proposals submitted to the Congress by the postal administration departments of member countries in accordance with the provisions of the General Rules of the Postal Union; discusses and signs the regulations of the Postal Union; elects the member countries of the Executive Council and the member countries of the Postal Research Advisory Council; elects the Director General and Deputy Director General of the International Bureau; and determines the country where the next Postal Union Congress will be held.

Member States

Before June 1948, the admission of member states was based on a free participation approach; in July 1948, the system was changed to a system where only sovereign states could apply, and must obtain the consent of at least two-thirds of the member states in order to obtain membership.

In 1966, it was changed to: As long as a United Nations member state formally declares its recognition of the Universal Postal Union Constitution and binding regulations, it can become a member of the Universal Postal Union; sovereign states that are not members of the United Nations must still obtain the consent of at least two-thirds of the member states before they can be accepted.

Origin of LOGO

The UPU logo is full of historical significance, inspired by the Universal Postal Union monument built in Bern, Switzerland in the early 20th century. The bronze and granite monument was officially inaugurated on October 4, 1909, to commemorate the founding of the UPU in 1874.

Development History

In 1840, the United Kingdom established a letter delivery system for the public with a unified fee, and issued the world's first stamp, the Penny Black, beginning the development of a modern public postal service. At that time, the letter exchange systems between countries were still chaotic and inconsistent, which was not compatible with the rapid development of trade between countries. People were eager to establish a simple and convenient international mail exchange system to ensure that mail could flow freely without being restricted by national borders, and the Postal Union came into being.

From September 15 to October 9, 1874, representatives from 22 countries including Germany, France, Britain, Romania, Switzerland and the United States held a Plenipotentiary Conference in Bern, Switzerland, and signed the first international postal convention, the Berne Treaty, establishing the General Postal Union.

In May 1878, due to the rapid increase in the number of member countries, the "General Postal Union" was officially renamed the "Universal Postal Union". The General Postal Union held its second congress in Paris, revised the "Berne Treaty", and renamed it the "Universal Postal Convention".

October 9th of each year is therefore designated as "World Post Day".

On July 1, 1948, the UPU became a specialized agency of the United Nations.

As of the end of 1984, there were 167 UPU member countries.

English became the working language of the Postal Union in 1994. The official language remains French.

On October 17, 2018, the White House announced that the United States would start the process of withdrawing from the Universal Postal Union. If a new agreement with the Universal Postal Union is not reached within the next year, the United States will withdraw. The implementation date will not be later than January 1, 2020.

In October 2019, the United States officially announced that it would give up its withdrawal from the Universal Postal Union.

About China

On March 1, 1914, the Republic of China joined the League as a member state.

In 1953, China severed ties with the Postal Union due to Taiwan occupying its seat.

In April 1972, after the Universal Postal Union recognized the People's Republic of China as the sole legal representative of the organization, relations with the organization began to normalize.

In November 1972, China, as a member of the Postal Research Advisory Council, sent representatives to attend the Council's annual meeting held in Bern.

China was elected as a member of the organization's Administrative Council and Operational Council at the 21st General Assembly held in Seoul from August 22 to September 14, 1994.

On May 9, 1997, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China approved the Fifth Additional Protocol to the Constitution of the Universal Postal Union.

From August 23 to September 15, 1999, the 22nd Universal Postal Union Congress was held in Beijing.

In September 2004, Huang Guozhong, the candidate recommended by the Chinese government, was elected Deputy Director General of the International Bureau of the Universal Postal Union at the 23rd Universal Postal Union Congress held in Bucharest, the capital of Romania.

On October 6, 2016, at the 26th Universal Postal Union Congress held in Istanbul, Turkey, my country was successfully elected as a member of the new Universal Postal Union Administrative Council and Postal Operations Council.

References

• 1. The United States announced the start of the process of withdrawing from the Universal Postal Union: Xinhuanet [cited on 2018-10-10T16:00:00.000Z]
• 2. How did the Universal Postal Union (UPU) courier circling the earth come about? Please respect the fruits of others' labor, and do not copy and paste Logo Intelligence Bureau articles to create Internet garbage. Original address: https://www.logonews.cn/universal-postal-union-logo.html: Logo Intelligence Bureau [cited on 2017-02-20T16:00:00.000Z]
• 3. The United States officially announced that it would give up withdrawing from the Universal Postal Union: United Nations News [cited on 2019-10-08T16:00:00.000Z]
• 4. In which year was the Universal Postal Union established? What is the development history of the Universal Postal Union? : Interesting History [Reference Date 2018-12-06T16:00:00.000Z]
• 5. What are the functions of the Universal Postal Union? : Sohu [cited on 2019-09-25T16:00:00.000Z]