The ICRC forges and maintains close relations with a wide range of intergovernmental organizations, among others the UN, the African Union (AU), the Council of Europe (CoE), the League of Arab States, the Organization of American States, the Organization of the Islamic Conference, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the OSCE, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Collective Security Treaty Organization and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. It does this from its headquarters in Geneva and from its delegations covering coun­tries that are major global diplomatic players and where such organizations sit, basically in Addis Ababa, Brussels, Cairo, Kuala Lumpur, Moscow, New York, Paris and Washington.

In particular, the ICRC follows the work of UN bodies in New York and Geneva such as the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, the Peacebuilding Commission, the Human Rights Council, the Economic and Social Council and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, offering its expertise on matters related to IHL and issues of humanitarian concern. It also engages in regular exchanges with the various UN and non-UN humanitarian agencies, NGOs and their umbrella organizations, organizations with an economic or development mission such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and private business companies and their industry associations.

The ICRC’s Multilateral Diplomacy and Humanitarian Coordination Unit acts as the focal point for relations between the ICRC and these organizations.

In 2008, issues of humanitarian concern figured prominently on the international agenda, as major international crises and their consequences proved increasingly intractable. The space for neutral and independent humanitarian action was regularly restricted. Reform of the UN humanitarian system progressed, further shaping the environment in which the ICRC operates.

Both in and from New York and Geneva, the ICRC continued to keep a close eye on the UN reform process and its implementation, monitored developments on humanitarian and legal issues at the UN and followed debates and decisions on the various contexts and cross-cutting issues discussed in UN fora. It strived to keep abreast of developments that are relevant to its own humanitarian activities, and to promote understanding of and support for its mandate and work, both generally and in relation with the UN’s cluster approach (see New York). In Geneva it followed the work of the Human Rights Council’s regular and special sessions and the three sessions of the Universal Periodic Review. It also developed its contacts in diplomatic circles.

In Africa, the ICRC maintained strong cooperation with the AU, the AU Commission and relevant AU departments, particularly the Peace and Security Council, with which the ICRC’s head of operations for East Africa discussed the humanitarian situation and ICRC activities in Somalia and Sudan. The ICRC and the Council presidency strengthened their structured dialogue; the ICRC is contributing significantly to the preparation of the special summit on IDPs in Africa, to be held in April 2009 in Kampala, having already provided substantive input for the first convention on the protection of IDPs to be adopted at the summit (see African Union). Through its network of focal points in delegations across Africa, the ICRC also strengthened its cooperation with Africa’s main regional economic communities and attended some of the events organized under their auspices. In 2008, it signed a cooperation agreement with the Intergovernmental Authority on Development.

In Latin America and in Asia, the ICRC maintained multilateral contacts with the main regional organizations on institutional priorities, namely IDPs, missing persons and, in Latin America in particular, the recourse to force by police and the military in situations of urban violence (see also Mexico and Washington). It developed its working relations with ASEAN, which is becoming an international organization with full legal personality following the ratification of its charter by all member States (see also Kuala Lumpur). Contacts between the two organizations intensified to strengthen the emergency response to the devastation of cyclone Nargis in Myanmar (see Myanmar).

Interaction and cooperation with the CoE and the OSCE – facili­tated by the Swedish and Finnish chairmanships respectively – led to a convincing show of support, in particular for the ICRC’s response to operational challenges as a result of renewed conflicts. In a resolution adopted in June 2008, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe invited member States to give active support to ICRC efforts aimed at assisting States to accede to and implement IHL treaties. It also encouraged them to support ICRC protection activities, efforts to prevent enforced disappearances and assistance to civilian victims of landmines and cluster munitions. ICRC president Jakob Kellenberger officially addressed parliamentarians from the Council of Europe’s 47 member States during discussion of a report of the Assembly’s Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population.

The ICRC continued to engage in dialogue on common humanitarian concerns with Muslim organizations and their leaders. It participated as an observer in several high-level meetings, including the 11th Session of the Islamic Summit Conference in Dakar (Senegal), the 35th Session of the Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers in Kampala (Uganda), and the 5th Session of the Conference of the Parliamentary Union of OIC Member States.

The ICRC maintained and developed interaction with the IPU, attending its Assemblies in Cape Town and Geneva, participating in meetings of the ad hoc committee on IHL and monitoring Standing Committee debates and other relevant IPU activities. The IPU and the ICRC continued to work on two joint projects on missing persons: a handbook for parliamentarians, and a study of national implementation by IPU member parliaments of international norms related to the missing.

The ICRC was actively involved in public discussions on issues relevant to its work, including migration, the specific situation of women and children in conflict, internal displacement, conflict prevention, peace building and the strengthening of the humanitarian response to “forgotten” emergencies.

In recognition of the scale and complexity of needs arising from crises, the growing number of relief organizations on the ground, the diversity of the humanitarian environment and changes resulting from the UN humanitarian reform process, the ICRC continued to consult and coordinate with other humanitarian actors, both at headquarters and in the field, focusing on reality-based and action-oriented coordination. For the delegation in Iraq, the ICRC maintained a full-time delegate position to liaise with the various players involved in humanitarian assistance for the Iraqi population, in particular with the UN bodies.

The ICRC actively participated in the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), in its capacity as standing invitee. It played an active role in the IASC’s main meetings, working groups, information meetings and sub-groups, such as the IASC Informal Group on Humanitarian Space. ICRC field delegations attended coordination meetings and cooperated with UN staff to develop Common Humanitarian Action Plans in an effort to prevent duplication or gaps in relief aid.

Throughout the year, the ICRC maintained close bilateral opera­tional and institutional relations with various UN and non-UN humanitarian agencies. In the framework of this ongoing dialogue, and because of its particular cooperation with the UNHCR and WFP in most operational contexts, bilateral meetings with both UN agencies were held at the highest level. The ICRC president was the invited guest speaker at the UNHCR 59th Executive Committee. His address focused on the plight of IDPs and the need for effective and meaningful coordination among all actors, based on real needs and agency capacities.

The ICRC also attended several other executive councils, board meetings and special working groups of the UN and other agencies engaged in humanitarian activities (IOM, OHCHR, UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, WHO). These meetings were repeated opportunities to address issues of common concern, such as humanitarian coordination, the implementation of the UN cluster approach, the humanitarian response to IDPs, access to victims and security constraints, and complementarity, from the point of view of the ICRC’s independent and neutral action.

In the same spirit of reality-based and action-oriented coordination, the ICRC maintained close contacts with the major operational NGOs at field and headquarters levels, both bilaterally and through NGO consortia. It is a full member of the Steering Committee for Humanitarian Response and has observer status with the International Council of Voluntary Agencies. The many meetings it attended or organized were opportunities in particular to share common concerns, to acquire a better understanding of the approaches, working methods, strengths and constraints of others, and on this basis to reinforce coordination and cooperation whenever possible. Such meetings included:

• a conference organized jointly by the ICRC and Voluntary Organisations in Cooperation in Emergencies (VOICE) in April on the future challenges of water and conflict
• a high-level meeting between MSF and the ICRC
• ICRC participation in the Global Humanitarian

Platform, created in 2006 as an outcome of the dialogue between UN and non-UN humanitarian agencies to enhance the effectiveness of humanitarian action

Businesses influence conflicts in places where they are operational, prompting the ICRC to participate in initiatives and processes aimed at better understanding and managing that phenomenon. In particular, it contributed where relevant to the work of the UN Special Representative on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises; it was also a regular participant in the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights process.

A close link was maintained with the Humanitarian Liaison Working Group, which brings together representatives of major donor countries in Geneva to foster dialogue with humanitarian agencies.