UNO
Liechtenstein joined the UN on 18 September 1990 and was accredited at the Office of the United Nations in Geneva (UNOG) on 1 October 1992. Geneva is the European headquarters of the United Nations and accommodates also several UN Special Organisations. Two thirds of all activities of the UN system take place in Geneva, especially in the areas of health; labour rights; intellectual property; human rights; humanitarian aid; economy, trade and development; disarmament; science and technology as well as research and education. Each year about 8’000 meetings are held in Geneva. Therefore, the Geneva UN-base is worldwide the most active intergovernmental conference centre. The following Special Organisations of the United Nations are based in Geneva:
World Health Organisation (WHO)
International Labour Organisation (ILO)
World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO)
International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
World Meteorological Organisation (WMO)
The protection and promotion of human rights is the task of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). The Human Rights Council deals with the international protection of human rights at the intergovernmental level. In addition, meetings of the expert committees which monitor compliance with international conventions on human rights by elaborating recommendations and comments regarding the national implementation of the agreements take place in Geneva. Currently, there are nine of these expert committees. Liechtenstein is party to six of these agreements. In January 2013 the first periodic review of the human rights situation in Liechtenstein took place in Geneva (Universal Periodic Review), followed by the second periodic review in January 2018. For details and recommendations please see. The next periodic review will take place in January 2023
The activities of the Permanent Mission in relation with the UN are focussed on the work of the Human Rights Council, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The Mission also follows the activities of the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Another important stakeholder in Geneva is the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which is the most important partner of the Liechtenstein humanitarian aid. Finally, the Mission deals with the participation in several meetings of the States Parties in the area of disarmament.
In this context, it is worth mentioning the following disarmament conventions, of which Liechtenstein is a party:
- Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction (Ottawa, 18 September 1997);
- Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction (10 April 1972);
- Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons which may be deemed to be Excessively or to have Indiscriminate Effects (Geneva, 10 October 1980);
- Protocol on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Mines, Booby-Traps and Other Devices (Geneva, 3 May 1996);
- Protocol to the Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons which may be deemed to be excessively Injurious or to have Indiscriminate Effects (Vienna, 13 October 1995);
- Protocol on Explosive Remnants of War to the Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons which may be deemed to be Excesssively Injurious or to have Indiscrimate Effects (Protocol V); (Geneva, 28 November)