Court of Conciliation and Arbitration
Aerial view of Geneva, where the Court of Conciliation and Arbitration is headquartered. (UN Photo/Jean-Marc Ferré)
The Court of Conciliation and Arbitration, which is based in Geneva, provides a mechanism for the peaceful settlement of disputes between States. The Court was established by the Convention on Conciliation and Arbitration within the OSCE. This mechanism can be activated unilaterally by any State party to the Convention for a dispute between it and one or more other States parties. At the conclusion of the proceedings, the conciliation commission presents a report and recommendations to the Parties. The Parties then have thirty days to decide whether they accept those or not. If there is no agreement within that period, and if the parties have agreed to submit to arbitration, an ad hoc arbitral tribunal may be set up whose ruling will be legally binding on the Parties. Arbitral proceedings may also be initiated by agreement between States parties concerned.
