International Organizations and Agreements

International Organizations and Agreements

International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol):

It functions as an administrative liaison between the law-enforcement agencies of the member countries, providing communications and database assistance. It was formed in 1923 and is headquartered at Lyon, France.

African Union (AU):

It was established in 2002 to accelerate the political and socio-economic integration of the continent; to promote and defend African common positions on issues of interest to the continent and its peoples; to achieve peace and security in Africa; and to promote democratic institutions, good governance and human rights. Its secretariat is based in Adis Ababa and its current chairman is Bingu Wa Mutharika.

Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN):

It was founded in 1998 and it is responsible for managing the assignment of domain names and IP addresses. It is headquartered at Maria del Rey.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA):

Established in 1957 through IAEA treaty. It seeks to promote peaceful use of nuclear energy and reports both to General Assembly and Security Council (both of U.N.). It is headquartered in Vienna and its Director General is Yukio Amano.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD):

Established in 1948 as Organisation for European Economic Co-operation (OEEC). It is headquartered in Paris. It defines itself as a forum of countries committed to democracy and the market economy, providing a setting to compare policy experiences, seek answers to common problems, identify good practices, and co-ordinate domestic and international policies.

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC):

It’s an intergovernmental body tasked with evaluating the risk of climate change caused by human activity. It was established in 1988 and shared 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore.

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO):

It is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on 4 April 1949. It is headquartered in Brussels and constitutes a system of collective defence whereby its member states agree to mutual defence in response to an attack by any external party.

Commonwealth of Nations:

It is an intergovernmental organisation (of 54 independent countries all (but for Mozambique and Rwanda) of which were formerly part of the British Empire) through which countries with diverse social, political and economic backgrounds are regarded as equal in status. It is headquartered in London and it’s Secretary General is Kamalesh Sharma.

Bank of the South (BancoSur):

It is a monetary fund and lending organization established on September 26, 2009 by Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Ecuador, Bolivia and Venezuela with an initial capital of 20 billion U.S. dollars as an alternative to the World Bank and IMF.

Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC):

It’s a cartel of twelve countries (Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Venezuela) which fixes the price of oil on the international markets. It is headquartered at Vienna, Austria.

International Monetary Fund (IMF):

It was established in the year 1944 to stabilize exchange rates and assist the reconstruction of the world's international payment system. It’s headquartered at Washington D.C. and it’s Managing Director is Dominique Strauss-Kahn.

Bank for International Settlements (BIS):

It is an international organization of central banks which fosters international monetary and financial policy. It is headquartered in Basel, Switzerland and it was established in 1930.

European Central Bank (ECB):

The European Central Bank (ECB) is the institution of the European Union (EU) tasked with administrating the monetary policy of the EU member states. It is thus one of the world's most important central banks. The bank was established by the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1998, and is headquartered in Frankfurt. The current President of the ECB is Jean-Claude Trichet.

GUAM Organization for Democracy and Economic Development:

It is a regional organization of four post- Soviet states: Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova. Its charter was signed on June 6 to June 7, 2001. It is headquartered at Kiev, Ukraine.

Asian Development Bank (ADB):

It is a regional development bank established in 1966 to promote economic and social development in Asian and Pacific countries through loans and technical assistance. It is headquartered at Manila and it’s President is Haruhiko Kuroda.

European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN):

It was established in the year 1954 for setting up the world’s largest particle physics laboratory. It’s main function is to provide infrastructure needed for high-energy physics research. It is headquartered at Geneva and it’s President is Rolf-Dieter Heuer.

Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG):

It is a multinational body concerned with reducing nuclear proliferation by controlling the export and re-transfer of materials that may be applicable to nuclear weapon development.

International Agreements / Conventions –

Treaty of Lisbon:

It was signed by European Union member states in December, 2007. It amends the Treaty on European Union (Maastricht; 1992) and the Treaty establishing the European Community ( Rome; 1957). Prominent changes include increased involvement of European Parliament in legislative process.

WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FTC):

This treaty came into force in 2005 and provides a framework of national, regional and international tobacco control measures, including the setting of broad limits on the production, sale, distribution, advertisement, taxation, and government policies towards tobacco. It has been ratified by 168 countries.

Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court:

It is the treaty that established the International Criminal Court (ICC). It was adopted in 1998 and it entered into force on 1 July 2002. Among other things, the statute establishes the court's functions, jurisdiction and structure.

Ottawa Treaty (Mine Ban Treaty):

This treaty bans all anti-personnel landmines and a party to the treaty must destroy all the anti-personnel mines in its possession within four years. Just a small number of mines is allowed to remain for training (mine-clearance, -detection, etc.). Within ten years after signing the treaty, the country should have cleared all of its mined areas. It was signed by 133 countries in 1997.

Kyoto Protocol:

Under this Protocol, 37 industrialized countries commit themselves to a reduction of four greenhouse gases (GHG) (carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, sulphur hexafluoride) and two groups of gases (hydrofluorocarbons and perfluorocarbons) produced by them, and all member countries give general commitments. It was adopted in 1997 and entered into force in 2005.

POP Air Pollution Protocol:

It is an agreement to provide for reduction in the emissions of persistent organic pollutants (POP) in order to reduce their transboundary fluxes so as to protect human health and the environment from adverse effects. It entered into force in 2003 and twenty-seven countries and European Union have signed it.

WIPO Copyright Treaty:

It was adopted by member states of World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) in 1996. It provides additional protections for copyright deemed necessary due to advances in information technology.

General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS):

It is a treaty of the World Trade Organization (WTO) that entered into force in January 1995 as a result of the Uruguay Round negotiations. The treaty was created to extend the multilateral trading system to service sector, in the same way the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) provides such a system for merchandise trade.

The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification:

It is a convention to combat desertification and mitigate the effects of drought through national action programs that incorporate long-term strategies supported by international cooperation and partnership arrangements. It entered into force in 1996.

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea:

It is the international agreement that resulted from the third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III), which took place from 1973 through 1982. The Law of the Sea Convention defines the rights and responsibilities of nations in their use of the world's oceans, establishing guidelines for businesses, the environment, and the management of marine natural resources.

The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA):

It is an agreement signed by the governments of the United States, Canada, and Mexico creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The agreement came into force on January 1, 1994. It superseded the Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement between the U.S. and Canada.

Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD):

It is an international legally binding treaty that was adopted in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992. The Convention has three main goals: conservation of biological diversity, sustainable use of its components; and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources.

Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT or NNPT):

It is a treaty to limit the spread (proliferation) of nuclear weapons. The treaty came into force on 5 March 1970 and currently there are 189 states party to the treaty. NPT is commonly described as having three main "pillars": non-proliferation, disarmament, and peaceful use.

Biological Weapons Convention:

This was the first multilateral disarmament treaty banning the production of an entire category of weapons. It entered into force on March 26, 1975. This convention prohibits to developing, production, stockpiling or otherwise acquiring or retaining microbial or other biological agents except for peaceful purposes.

Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations:

It is an international treaty on diplomatic immunities and privileges of a diplomatic mission. It was adopted in 1961.

Vienna Convention on Law of Treaties (VCLT):

It is a treaty concerning the customary international law on treaties between states. This convention entered into force on 1980. The VCLT has been ratified by 110 states as of October 2009; those that have not ratified it yet may still recognize it as binding upon them in as much as it is a restatement of customary law.

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES / Washington Convention):

It is an international agreement, drafted as a result of a resolution adopted in 1973 at a meeting of members of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival and it accords varying degrees of protection to more than 33,000 species of animals and plants.