The Function of Diplomatic Missions in Times of Armed Conflict or Foreign Armed Intervention

Abstract

This article examines Raoul Wallenberg’s work as a diplomat in Budapest between June 1944 and January 1945. It suggests that Wallenberg’s legacy was initially very limited as a result of the state-centric approach to the codification of diplomatic law in the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations 1961. Nevertheless, it is argued that the emergence of the so-called “new” diplomacy, coupled with the developing notion of “responsibility to protect” in the face of gross violations of human rights, such as those faced by Wallenberg, have opened up the possibility for diplomats to engage in the process of protecting civilian populations in times of internal strife