Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (18th April 1961)

The States Parties to the present Convention,

Recalling that peoples of all nations from ancient times have recognized the status of diplomatic agents,

Having in mind the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations concerning the sovereign equality of States, the maintenance of international peace and security, and the promotion of friendly relations among nations,

Believing that an international convention on diplomatic intercourse, privileges and immunities would contribute to the development of friendly relations among nations, irrespective of their differing constitutional and social systems,

Realizing that the purpose of such privileges and immunities is not to benefit individuals but to ensure the efficient performance of the functions of diplomatic missions as representing States,

Affirming that the rules of customary international law should continue to govern questions not expressly regulated by the provisions of the present Convention,

Have agreed as follows:

ART. 3. — The functions of a diplomatic mission consist, inter alia, in:

Representing the sending State in the receiving State;

Protecting in the receiving State the interests of the sending State and of its nationals, within the limits permitted by international law;

Negotiating with the Government of the receiving State;

Ascertaining by all lawful means conditions and developments in the receiving State, and reporting thereon to the Government of the sending State;

Promoting friendly relations between the sending State and the receiving State, and developing their economic, cultural and scientific relations.

Nothing in the present Convention shall be construed as preventing the performance of consular functions by a diplomatic mission.

ART. 29. — The person of a diplomatic agent shall be inviolable. He shall not be liable to any form of arrest or detention. The receiving State shall treat him with due respect and shall take all appropriate steps to prevent any attack on his person, freedom or dignity.

ART. 38. — Except insofar as additional privileges and immunities may be granted by the receiving State, a diplomatic agent who is a national of or permanently resident in that State shall enjoy only immunity from jurisdiction, and inviolability, in respect of official acts performed in the exercise of his functions.

Other members of the staff of the mission and private servants who are nationals of or permanently resident in the receiving State shall enjoy privileges and immunities only to the extent admitted by the receiving State.

However, the receiving State must exercise its jurisdiction over those persons in such a manner as not to interfere unduly with the performance of the functions of the mission.

ART. 44. — The receiving State must, even in case of armed conflict, grant facilities in order to enable persons enjoying privileges and immunities, other than nationals of the receiving State, and members of the families of such persons irrespective of their nationality, to leave at the earliest possible moment. It must, in particular, in case of need, place at their disposal the necessary means of transport for themselves and their property.

ART. 50. — The present Convention shall remain open for accession by any State belonging to any of the four categories mentioned in article 48.

The instruments of accession shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

ART. 51. — The present Convention shall enter into force on the thirtieth day following the date of deposit of the twenty-second instrument of ratification or accession with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

ART. 53. — The original of the present Convention, of which the Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish texts are equally authentic, shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall send certified copies thereof to all States belonging to any of the four categories mentioned in article 48.

In witness whereof the undersigned Plenipotentiaries, being duly authorized thereto by their respective Governments, have signed the present Convention.

 

Done at Vienna this eighteenth day of April one thousand nine hundred and sixty-one.

 

 

Appendix 2

 

Properly dressed woman in diplomacy and business

Golden rules

1. Women's Hair should always be clean and neatly combed, and if dyed roots should not be showing. Make-up should be discreet, without too many layers of powder and blush. Eyes and lips should be stressed. Lipstick is almost obligatory in any occasion, since it creates a distance between interlocutors. It is advisable not to choose bright colours. Lipstick should be stable, not to leave trace on cups and glasses, because it is not tasteful and can be considered squeamish. At high temperatures in particular, one should pay attention to the quality of makeup to avoid smearing. Make up is never touched up in a public place, especially not at the table, but in appropriate indoors facilities, away from the eyes of persons present. As with men, piercing, tattoos and chewing gums are not allowed.

2. Sleeveless clothes are generally not allowed.
3. Jewellery should be decent, avoid costume jewellery. Do not put on more than two pieces of jewellery, to avoid resembling a Christmas tree. Earrings are the most noticeable jewellery on a woman and therefore, especially on morning and daily occasions, should not be too flashy. We can put one earring on each ear. Pearl necklaces are certainly something that can be recommended, as they can be worn on all occasions, day and night, even at funerals and if we are in mourning, when one usually does not wear jewellery except personal pieces - wedding and engagement rings and First Communion or Confirmation necklaces. One should not wear too many rings at once, because in the nonverbal communication this marks defensiveness and insecurity.
4. Stockings should be neat, not worn out and in accordance with the colour of clothes, the best are skin colour stockings (in which case a shade or two darker), blue, gray and black. Women in diplomatic and business community will never choose mesh or pattern stockings. If you decide to wear seamed stockings, you should be careful because it can be difficult to keep the back seam straight. On especially festive occasions stockings are obligatory even at + 40 degrees Celsius. Women are expected to wear stockings on all official occasions. It is advisable to have a spare pair at hand.
5. Shoes or sandals are always closed toe, so the toes are never visible. If we are invited to a beach gathering, we will not wear stockings and closed toe sandals, but we will make sure that the clothes are not too revealing and we will preferably choose a one piece swimming suit over a bikini than we might wear otherwise. As well as clothes, we will choose shoes in a way that we feel comfortable and look pretty, so we are in no way burdened by them and do not have to think about them. We will not wear mules, rope-soled shoes or worn out shoes, while running shoes are appropriate only for excursions and sport.
6. Artificial, long, polished and bright coloured fingernails are better suited for entertainment than for business and diplomatic world.
7. A woman must always have a purse. It is an integral part of her clothing. For ceremonial occasions smaller purses are more appropriate and for daily occasions they can be sized according to wishes and needs. You are free to choose the colour of your bag. In the evening, apart from discreet colours, they may be silver and gold. There is always a cotton handkerchief in the purse. Paper handkerchiefs are not to be used in public.
8. Lady's hat is worn only up to 6 p.m. If we decide on a hat, we have to know that we put it at home and take it off at home, even in winter. A woman does not take off her hat in public. During a daily event, we should ensure that in some situations the hat is not obscuring the view to people who sitting behind us. In that case, we will choose a smaller hat. We should make sure that the hat is in subtle colours, appearance and size, except for horse racing in Ascot where the prestige is determined by spectacular hats.
9. If we decide to wear gloves we have to know that they can restrain us in many ways. While handshaking, a women may or may not take off the glove. The basic rule is ‘'glove with a glove''. She can take it off if shaking a hand of a person who has no gloves - it will be a nice gesture. We never drink or eat wearing a glove and if we are at a ball, gloves are taken off when the welcome drink is served.
10. In diplomacy and business one should avoid wearing fur and leather, because we could find ourselves in an embarrassing situation if we encounter someone who is a big animal rights supporter. However, if you do wear fur, you should know that it is worn in the period between All Saints Day and Easter. Beyond that period, only entertainers wear it.

Milada Privora
Former Head of State Protocol, ambassador and Chief of Office of the Protocol of the Croatian President.

 

Role Play.

Student 1. You are a new diplomat appointed to Great Britain.

Student 2. You serve at State Protocol Department. Instruct a new diplomat.

 

Active Vocabulary

accredited envoy	уповноважений посланець
to further	сприяти
to safeguard	гарантувати, захищати
integrity	цілісність
consent	згода, дозвіл
persona non grata	персона нон грата, небажана особа
precedence	градація дипломатичних рангів
coercion	примус
harassment	ворожі акти, агресія
to withdraw a mission	відкликати дипломатичну місію
abuse of immunity	зловживання недоторканністю
inviolability	недоторканність
intrusion	вторгнення
to seize	заарештовувати, затримувати
diplomatic bag	дипломатична пошта
detain	затримувати, брати під варту
to waive	відмовлятися (від права)
exemption	звільнення (від чогось)
to accord	погоджувати
customs duty	митний збір
to bar from	перешкоджати чомусь, забороняти
disrepute	погана репутація
efficient performance	ефективна робота
international courtesy	міжнародний етикет
civility	ввічливість
gender	стать
diplomatic insult	дипломатична образа
refrain from	утримуватись від чогось
postpone	відстрочувати
diplomatic rank	дипломатичний ранг
attaché	аташе місії
charge d’affaires	повірений у справах
charge d’affaires en pied	постійний повірений у справах
counselor	радник (посольства)
ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary	надзвичайний і повноважний посол
minister resident	міністр-резидент, дипломатичний представник
high commissioner	Верховний комісар
substitute	заступник
legation	дипломатичне представництво
ad interim	тимчасовий, на даний час
deputy Chief of mission	заступник посла
in-depth knowledge	глибокі знання
to evolve	виникати, розвиватись
bilateral relations	двосторонні відносини
host country	країна перебування
broadmindedness	толерантність, широта поглядів
cultural diversity	культурне різноманіття
that goes without saying	абсолютно очевидно
permanent mission	постійне представництво
consulate general	генеральне консульство
honorary consul	почесний консул
abound	бути в надлишку
to be dressed up	бути парадно вдягненим
to embarrass	ставити в незручне становище
biased	упереджений
agenda	порядок денний
guest of honour	почесний гість
sovereign equality	суверенна рівність
diplomatic intercourse	дипломатичні стосунки
affirm	підтверджувати
inter alia	між іншим, крім того