The first effort by the United Nations to define the Middle East was made in 1947, when the General Assembly resolved to create an Economic Commission for the Middle East. As a result of tensions produced in the region by the creation of the state of Israel, the commission was never created. But before the project collapsed, a Subcommittee on the Geographical Delimitation of the Area recommended a list of nations to be included in the commission. Any non-self-governing territory in the Arabian Peninsula, Eastern Mediterranean, and North East Africa could apply for membership as well. Some representatives had felt that Transjordan, Pakistan, and Libya should be included, but those nations did not appear in the final recommendation.

Source: “Report of the Ad Hoc Committee for the Middle East,” Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, Ninth Session, Supplement no. 4, 20.