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A Ithough Article 24 of chapter V of the UN Charter clearly vests
the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace
and security on the Security Council (SC), the Charter provides a role
for regional organizations and arrangements in the maintenance of
peace and security in their respective regions. Article 52 of the Charter
provides that the UN members "entering into such arrangements or
constituting such agencies shall make every effort to achieve pacific
settlement of local disputes through such regional arrangements or by
such regional agencies before referring them to the Security Council."
In this Article the role of regional arrangements in using enforcement
actions (such as economic or military measures) under the authority of
the SC will be examined.