Progress of the Global Initiative to Galvanize Political Commitment to International Humanitarian Law
Slovenia organised a high-level event in Geneva together with Costa Rica, Switzerland and the International Committee of the Red Cross | Author MZEZ
The event was chaired by Marko Rakovec, Director-General of the Directorate for International Law and Protection of Interests at the Slovenian Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs.
The high-level panel, including Mirjana Špoljarić, President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and Alexandre Fasel, State Secretary of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, highlighted the challenges currently facing international humanitarian law (IHL), the importance of cooperation and the urgent need to strengthen global respect for IHL. The high-level panel also emphasised the importance of initiatives that develop concrete solutions to help build a global culture of respect for IHL. In this regard, the support of countries and political leaders is crucial. Just one year after its launch, the Initiative has already proven itself to be an excellent platform for cooperation and dialogue.
On behalf of the co-chairs of Workstream 4: Protecting Civilian Infrastructure (Slovenia, Algeria, Costa Rica and Sierra Leone), which operates within the framework of this global initiative, Director-General Rakovec also issued a statement including the conclusions of the first round of consultations among countries, as well as a call for participation in the second round of consultations on 3 November 2025.