Universal Postal Union

The Universal Postal Union (UPU, French: Union postale universelle) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates postal policies among member nations, in addition to the worldwide postal system. The UPU contains four bodies consisting of the Congress, the Council of Administration (CA), the Postal Operations Council (POC) and the International Bureau (IB). It also oversees two cooperatives including the Telematics and EMS Cooperatives respectively. Each member agrees to the same terms for conducting international postal duties. The UPU’s headquarters are located in Bern, Switzerland. Nearly every nation in the world, including North Korea (as of 1974), are members of the UPU, which has a member count of 192 nations. French is the union's official language. A non-UN member state may join the UPU if one third of the members approve the state's request for membership, and if such state ratifies the Constitution of the UPU.