The paper investigates the interaction between Pacific Asia and the United Nations. This is done through the examination of two dimensions for the purpose of the paper. The first dimension is some key norms of the Charter of the United Nations – such as the prohibition of the use of force in inter-state relations and the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of states – and their importance in China’s foreign policy and in the principles governing the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The other dimension is the contribution of the United Nations’ operations in Cambodia and East Timor to the development of United Nations’ peacekeeping. Although few such operations have been carried out in Pacific Asia the two selected cases have both been of considerable importance in the development of United Nations’ peacekeeping. Based on the examination of these two dimensions of the interaction between Pacific Asia and the United Nations a broader concluding analysis is carried out.