Multilateral diplomacy
Contents
We can define multilateral diplomacy as the cooperation of three or more countries that work toward a common goal. It has developed alongside bilateral diplomacy mainly through congresses and conferences. Modern multilateral diplomacy begins with the co-founding of international organizations, especially the UN, the Council of Europa, the OSCE, and the European Union.
In the wake of current challenges and globalization, multilateral diplomacy is an indispensable form of international diplomacy. Global challenges that we are facing such as climate change, migration, sustainable development, opportunities and risks of new technologies can only be addressed through mutual cooperation.
Updates
From our blog
Time to reflect: Multilateralism Day
24 April 2022
24 April is the International Day of Multilateralism and Diplomacy for Peace. This year, as multilateralism is in a profound crisis, it is definitely not a time for celebration. But it is not a time for desperation ei...
Quo vadis, United Nations?: Is the UN system too complex for its own good and how relevant is it today?
14 January 2022
Human history, as in fact the story of life itself, is a series of false starts, missteps, and incremental improvements, punctuated with very occasional quantum leaps. In diplomacy and politics, just as in evolution, ...
Summit meetings: Their importance in diplomacy
11 January 2022
Summits between state leaders that have no tangible outcomes are frequently considered a failure and a loss of resources and time. This post will provide a brief account of the arguments for and against the importanc...
X-Ray of the 76. UN General Assembly
12 October 2021
Cybersecurity, Diplomatic reporting, Future of meetings, International organisations, Multilateral diplomacy, Remote participation, Rights of future generations
After a year of online meetings, many heads of states returned to New York for the high-level session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) session during the third week of September. Around 40% of the leaders delivered s...
Training and courses
Events
Geneva Policy Immersion of the Capacity Development Programme in Multilateral Diplomacy for Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific Islands
07 Jun 17 - 17 Jun 17
Switzerland, Africa
Remote Participation – Opportunities and Challenges for Multilateral Diplomacy
17 May 12 -
Switzerland
Training Workshop in Contemporary Multilateral Diplomacy and E-diplomacy
19 Mar 12 - 22 Mar 12
South America
Resources
2020
The future of (multilateral) diplomacy? Changes in response to COVID-19 and beyond
The year 2020 marked the 75th anniversary of the United Nations (UN). It is also the year that the world was faced with responding to the emergence of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, an unprecedented global challenge that has left no area of society and no individual ... Read more...
2020
The ‘Working’ Non-Aligned Movement: Between Belgrade, Cairo, and Baku – The NAM’s Leadership Visibility
The objective of this chapter is to highlight lessons learned, promote best practices, and carry takeaways that are useful for other levels of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), or even other forums. ... Read more...
2018
Searching for Meaningful Human Control. The April 2018 Meeting on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (Briefing Paper #10)
In this briefing paper, Ms Barbara Rosen Jacobson analyses the debate of the April 2018 meeting of the Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW). The group was established to discuss emerging technologies in the area of... Read more...
2018
Digital Diplomacy as a foreign policy statecraft to achieving regional cooperation and integration in the Polynesian Leaders Group
Established in 2011, the Polynesian Leaders Groups serves to fulfill a vision of cooperation, strengthening integration on issues pertinent to the region and to the future of the PLG. Its nine – American Samoa, French Polynesia, Niue, Cook Islands, Tokelau, Tuvalu, T... Read more...
2018
European Union external action structure: Beyond state and intergovernmental organisations diplomacy
This dissertation analyses the organisation of the external action structures of the European Union. As an international actor which is beyond a state, but also different to traditional international organisations, the EU has created a “diplomatic constellation” ... Read more...
2017
Towards a secure cyberspace via regional co-operation
The study Towards a secure cyberspace via regional co-operation provides an overview of the international dialogue on establishing norms of state behaviour and confidence-building measures in cyberspace. ... Read more...
