European governments-in-exile, the Soviet Union, and Free France adopted the principles in September 1941. A wider group then signed the Declaration by United Nations in January 1942. The new organization was meant to avoid the weakness of the League of Nations, which the United States had promoted but then declined to join. The Soviet signature exposed the gap between universal language and political practice.
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From the Atlantic Charter to the United Nations
Allied adoption turned the charter into a foundation for the United Nations, even though signatories interpreted its promises selectively.