The abuse of diplomatic immunities in modern diplomatic practice: challenges and possible solutions

Sa？etak From the beginnings of diplomacy, there is a question of the protection of diplomats with the aim of unhindered performance of their duties (the theory of functional necessity). The rules of the international law on the position of diplomatic representatives began to be built up through the inviolability of messengers and envoys. With the development of permanent diplomatic representations in the 15th century and the acceptance of the practice by the majority of international community actors, the rules of protection of diplomats became part of customary international law. By adopting the 1961 Convention on Diplomatic Relations, which presents a combination of codification and progressive development of international law, the practice of receiving diplomatic representatives was standardized and the customary international law related to diplomatic immunities codified. At the same time, with the guaranteeing of diplomatic immunities, the cases of their abuse emerged, given the different possibilities of interpretation of the Vienna Convention articles. The paper analyzes the rules of diplomatic relations contained in the Convention and its theoretical foundation, examines whether the provisions of the Convention are consistent with the challenges of contemporary diplomatic relations, to what extent the Convention allows for the abuse of diplomatic immunities, different interpretations of its articles and ultimately offers possible solutions to the problem of the abuse of diplomatic immunities in diplomatic practice