An intergovernmental organization (IGO) or an international organization is an organization composed primarily of sovereign states (called member states) or other intergovernmental organizations. IGOs are established by a contract that acts as a charter to form the group. Treaties are concluded when the legal representatives (governments) of several states go through a ratification process that gives the IMO international legal personality. Intergovernmental organizations are an important aspect of international law. Organization created by a formal agreement (for example. B a treaty) between two or more governments. It can be set up on a global, regional or functional basis for broad or narrowly defined purposes. Created to protect and promote the national interests of the Member States. The United Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the African Union are examples. Also called IGO.
an international organization, an institution that attracts members from at least three States, operates in several States and whose members are held together by formal agreement. The Union of International Associations, a coordinating body, distinguishes between the more than 250 international governmental organizations (IGOs) established by intergovernmental agreements whose members are States and the approximately 6,000 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) whose members are associations or individuals. Although emerging international organizations were formed by Greek city-states and envisioned by European writers such as Pierre Dubois (c. 1250-c. 1320) and Émeric Crucé (c. 1590-1648), they did not appear in their contemporary form until the 19th century. After the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the leaders of the major European powers met regularly in a consultative system known as the Concert of Europe to try to preserve the status quo and protect their governments from internal rebellion. Later in the 19th century, various international organizations such as the International Telegraph Union (1865; now the International Telecommunication Union) were founded to provide specialized services and perform certain tasks. In 1899 and 1907, European and non-European states came together to develop rules for regulating armaments and war. These conferences produced the Hague Conventions, which contained agreements on the peaceful settlement of war, the treatment of prisoners of war and the rights of neutral States.
These various meetings and agreements served as precursors to the international organizations of the 20th century, such as the League of Nations and the United Nations (UN). Driven by the political and economic interdependencies and advances in communications and transport that developed after the Second World War, the United Nations became the centrepiece of a network of international organizations. An intergovernmental organization, sometimes presented as an international governmental organization and abbreviated as IGOs, is an organization composed primarily of sovereign States or other intergovernmental organizations. Intergovernmental organizations are often referred to as international organizations, although this term can also include international non-governmental organizations such as international non-profit organizations or multinational corporations. Intergovernmental organizations are an important aspect of international law. IGOs are set by a contract that acts as the charter that establishes the group. Treaties are concluded when the legal representatives of several States go through a ratification process that confers on the IMO an international legal personality. Intergovernmental organizations in the legal sense must be distinguished from mere groupings or coalitions of States such as the G8 or the Quartet. These groups or associations were not created by a governing document and exist only as working groups. Intergovernmental organizations must also be distinguished from treaties. Many contracts do not create an organization and are based solely on the legal recognition of the parties as an ad hoc committee for their administration. Other treaties have created an administrative apparatus that has not received international legal personality.
Intergovernmental organizations enjoy privileges and immunities to ensure their independent and effective functioning. They are set out in treaties governing the Organization (such as the United Nations Convention on the Privileges and Immunities and the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the International Criminal Court), which are usually complemented by other multinational agreements and national regulations (e.g. B the United States International Organization Immunities Act). Organizations are thus protected from the jurisdiction of national courts. The term intergovernmental organization (IGO) refers to a treaty-created unit in which two or more nations are involved in order to work in good faith on issues of common interest. In the absence of a contract, an OIG does not exist in the legal sense of the term. For example, the G8 is a group of eight countries that hold annual economic and political summits. Treaty IGOs are more advantageous than a simple grouping of nations because they are subject to international law and have the capacity to conclude enforceable agreements between themselves or with States. IGOs often work closely with other organisations, including NGOs (e.B Greenpeace and Amnesty International), which perform many of the same functions as their IMO counterparts and are particularly useful in mobilising public support, monitoring the effectiveness of international aid and providing information and expertise. .