What the ‘Permanent Court’ really is

This highly topical and informative article deserves to be completed with two ideas.

Diplomacy demands that no temporary crisis in international relations be described in terms of  “do or die”. Using the word “calamity” does not contribute to reaching win-win situations in diplomatic negotiations.

There is no “UN Permanent Court of Arbitration”. The current Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) has existed since 1899 and has the mandate to facilitate arbitration and other forms of dispute resolution between states. It is called “permanent” because it is expected to cope at any time with the rapidly evolving dispute-resolution needs of the international community. In fact, it is not even a “court” in the traditional sense, but just a permanent framework for arbitration, established to resolve specific disputes. The PCA is not a UN tribunal. 

Ioan Voicu