Professional Documents
Culture Documents
the League of Nations, and was widely believed that the old
Bilateral diplomacy is the conduct of relations on a state to diplomacy had been replaced by a new diplomacy.
state basis via formally accredited resident missions, which is
the conventional method for conducing bilateral diplomacy.
VIENNA CONVENTION ON DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS
FRENCH SYSTEM OF DIPLOMACY - 1961 Diplomatic Law provides diplomatic agents
1. Nuncius and Plenipotentiary with privileges and immunities under local criminal and
- Nuncius messenger, living letter civil law was located chiefly in customary international
- Plenipotentiary had full powers, plena potestas law
to negotiate on behalf of and bind his principal - The VCDR, codified the customary law on diplomacy,
- Temporary envoys with narrowly focused tasks clarified, tightened it, redefined its content, and
- Temporary embassies were expensive to relaunched it in the form of a multilateral treaty.
dispatch, vulnerable on the road, and because
of the high status required of their leaders always Why the VCDR?
likely to cause varying degrees of trouble over Growing anxiety that looseness in the existing
precedence and ceremonial. rules was enabling some states to use their
- The spread of resident missions was facilitated embassies for illegitimate purposes.
with the growing strength of the doctrine of raison Fear that traditional diplomatic institutions
d etat standards of personal morality were would be dismissed as part of the machinery
irrelevant in statecraft, where the only test was of neo-colonialism if the new states of Asia
what furthered the interest of the state. and Africa were not allowed to give them
- Continuous negotiation permanent diplomacy in official sanction.
all places Apprehension that the existing rules were
inadequate to cope with the great increase in
2. Secret Diplomacy the armies of privileged persons in the major
- Keeping either the fact of the content of capital cities attendant upon the arrival of
negotiations secret. representatives from these states.
- There are issues relating to security and defence - The hallmark of the VCDR was the unambiguously
that shouldnt be publicized because of its nature. functional approach to diplomatic privileges and
- Protocol procedural rules of diplomacy which immunities.
concern ceremonial procedures. Privileges were justified only by the need to
Important feature of diplomatic relations ensure its most efficient functioning.
- Diplomatic precedence order in which
diplomats are received and seated at official Inviolabilities and immunities:
functions, or append their signatures to treaties. 1. Inviolability of its premises
- Honesty in diplomacy the purpose of - Right to operate without constraint
negotiation was not to trick the other side but to - Receiving states are obliged to
reconcile states on the basis of a true estimate of provide all diplomatic missions with
their enduring interests. special protection
- The premises of the mission shall be
3. Professionalization of diplomacy inviolable
- Controlled entry, proper training, clear ranks, and - Bank accounts, movable properties,
regular payment archives and documents,
- The need for extensive knowledge and technical communication
expertise. 2. Inviolability of the person of the diplomat
- Immune from the criminal, civil, and
4. Diplomatic corps administrative jurisdiction of the
- Community of diplomats representing different receiving state
states who were resident in the same capital. - It is the duty of the receiving state to
- Doyen/Dean spokesman, longest-serving provide special protection for the
ambassador person of the diplomat
- Emerging sense of professional identity among - Freedom of movement of the
diplomats; recognized that they had professional diplomatic agent
interests that united them as diplomats. - However, receiving states are
- Localities going native; occupational hazard; it permitted to bar a diplomat from
became normal to rotate diplomats b/n postings, certain zones on grounds of national
typically after three or four years. security.
- VCDR signed on April 18, 1961, came into force
April 24, 1964
- A good embassy will honor local customs, traditions,
ARTICLE 3 OF THE VCDR mark important local events, and engage in extensive
Functions of a diplomatic mission: social contract
1. Representing the sending State in the receiving State; soft power projection/propaganda
2. Protecting in the receiving State the interests of the
sending State and of its nationals, within the limits NEGOTIATION
permitted by international law; - argument breeds argument and negotiation is a
3. Negotiating with the Government of the receiving continuous process
State; It is inevitable that arguments will lead to
4. Ascertaining by all lawful means conditions and arguments thus stretching the negotiation
developments in the receiving State, and reporting process
thereon to the Government of the sending State; - Bilateral diplomacy is better than summitry because
5. Promoting friendly relations between the sending State there will be an ambassador to focus on the issue than
and the receiving State, and developing their in summitry where there are a lot of state leaders that
economic, cultural and scientific relations might not adhere to the discussion