The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, in which all Societies have equal status and share equal responsibilities and duties in helping each other, is worldwide.

Analysis of the Fundamental principle of Universality

The text under the Fundamental principle of Universality includes the following elements:

• the Movement is worldwide;
• all Societies have equal status in the Movement;
• all Societies share equal responsibilities and duties in helping each other.

Consequences of the Fundamental principle of Universality

The consequences of the principle of Universality are threefold:

• one of the objectives of the Movement is to become universal, since it is one of the Movement's strengths that it has a National Society in almost every country of the world. There are a number of States which so far do not have a recognised National Society. However, this is to be seen as a temporary situation: once obstacles preventing Societies of those States to be recognised are lifted, the Movement will become truly global;
• solidarity between National Societies, which is the basis for cooperation between Societies;
• with regard to decision-making, all Societies carry one vote at the Federation's General Assembly, the Council of Delegates and the International Conference, irrelevant of their size or wealth.