Arria formula meeting
informal meetings between civil servants from UN Security Council members and non-members
An "Arria formula" meeting is an informal meeting of members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), which must be convened by a member of the UNSC in order for the meeting to take place.
Although derived from the formal meetings of the UNSC, the Arria formula distinguishes itself from typical UNSC meetings due to its informal nature, which allows Arria formula meetings to have no obligations to meet the official requirements of typical UNSC meetings. This means that while regular meetings of the Security Council require the presence of all 15 members of the council, follow a formal structure, and do not hear testimonies from non-members, individuals or non-governmental organisations, Arria formula meetings allow individuals, organisations, non-state actors and high delegations (from member states of the UN not represented on the Security Council) to engage in direct dialogue with UNSC members in a legitimate and confidential setting.
Arria formula meetings are presided over by a member of the UNSC, who acts as a facilitator of discussion, rather than the President of the Security Council. Sometimes, the meetings are also held in collaboration with states not on the council who think it would be beneficial to hear from specific individuals, organisations or institutions.
History
The first Arria formula meeting was held in 1992, after Venezuelan Ambassador Diego Arria, who during this time was the president of the Security Council, was contacted by a Croatian priest, Fra Joko Zorko who wanted to speak to members of the UNSC to report an eyewitness account of violence in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Crisis of Yugoslavia. As the structure of the UNSC meetings would not allow for the testimony to be heard during a security council meeting, and there was no formal way to hold a meeting between the UNSC and Fra Joko Zorko, Ambassador Diego Arria invited council members to meet outside the Council chambers in the UN delegates lounge to share the testimony of Fra Joko Zorko.
After this first meeting, Ambassador Diego Arria decided to institutionalise the meeting and it became known as the Arria formula.
Ambassador Diego Arria created the Arria formula meeting to allow for informal consultation to take place so actors could engage in consultation with members of the UNSC in order for UNSC members to be accountable and honest in their consultations with non-member actors. Ambassador Arria preferred to create an informal meeting with members of the security council rather than encourage bilateral meetings with major powers because "in an informal consultation in front of other countries, they have to be honest".
The public source identifies “Arria formula meeting” as informal meetings between civil servants from UN Security Council members and non-members. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Arria, formula and meeting.
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