Last month Clingendael Academy welcomed 20 newly posted diplomats and ambassadors from various embassies in The Hague for the fifth edition of the “The Hague International City of Peace and Justice Seminar” for the Corps Diplomatique.

Navigating international organizations and courts in the Hague

The Netherlands is host country to hundreds of international organizations and the world’s most important courts such as the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court. For newly posted diplomats in the Hague, it can be a daunting task to get acquainted with the organizations and courts, understand their importance, structures and way of working, and to use this knowledge for their day-to-day work at their Embassies. The seminar therefore clarified how The Hague came about as an international city of peace and justice; facilitated an exchange between newly posted diplomats and representatives of various international organizations in The Hague and created an opportunity for the participants to expand their networks.

The Seminar for the Corps Diplomatique

The Netherlands Ambassador for International Organizations, Mr. Paul van den IJssel, provided a key-note speech and Q&A session. In subgroups, participants met with and interviewed representatives from the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Court of Justice, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, and the International Commission on Missing persons. The representatives shared their insights on the work of their organizations and their relevance in international politics and diplomacy. This was the fifth time Clingendael Academy organized the seminar “The Hague City of Peace and Justice” for newly posted diplomats from the Corps Diplomatique in the Hague. The seminar took place during the Human Rights Week which lasted from 5 until 10 December, 2022.