Opening Statement by Dr Gilles Carbonnier, Vice-President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) At the event commemorating 75th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I would like to thank the embassy of Switzerland to Poland and the University of Warsaw for co-convening this event marking the 75th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions. 

I am pleased to be visiting Warsaw for the first time in my tenure as Vice President of the ICRC and to be invited to speak today. I am also grateful for Poland’s growing support to the ICRC and look forward to further enhancing our relationship with the Polish Red Cross and other partners. 

This year, we mark the 75th anniversary of the four Geneva Conventions. They are foundational treaties of international humanitarian law that exist to prevent some of armed conflicts’ worst consequences 
and to preserve a minimum of humanity even in time of war. HISTORY – Balance humanity and military necessity. Universal.

Yet, it is under strain. We witness a harrowing list of violations — children, women and men killed indiscriminately, detainees and prisoners of war subjected to inhumane treatment, horrifying numbers of women and girls subjected to sexual violence, hospitals, schools and humanitarian workers deliberately targeted and humanitarian action intentionally obstructed. International humanitarian law prohibits all this. Such trends must be stopped and reversed.

In an increasingly polarized world, the Geneva Conventions stand as a rare collective agreement that even wars have limits. However, despite universal ratification and supportive narratives, non-compliance is rampant. Overly permissive interpretations of international humanitarian law dilute its protective power.

IHL treaties are not theoretical instruments to be adopted in times of peace, but then abandoned when confronted elevated security risks or the outbreak of an armed conflict.

Recently, a State party to the Convention on Cluster Munitions has initiated a process what would represent a first ever, and highly regrettable, withdrawal from a humanitarian disarmament treaty. Other countries at war are watching and might seize this as an excuse to withdraw from other such treaties. 

Maintaining and strengthening international humanitarian law is a collective responsibility of all High-Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions. 

States must elevate respect for international humanitarian law as a political priority.

Just eight years ago, there were less than 50 armed conflicts worldwide. Today, my organization has recorded over 120 armed conflicts involving 60 states and some 130 non-state armed groups. We are currently working on frontlines, responding to the humanitarian consequences in about 90 countries. 

Our humanitarian work is increasingly impeded by access constrains that are either imposed by parties to the conflict or because of the lack of security guarantees. 2024 is set to be yet another record year in the number of humanitarian workers killed while seeking to save lives and alleviate suffering.  Today, we still painfully mourn the loss of three colleagues who were killed in Eastern Ukraine, barely a month ago. 

Under the Geneva Conventions, parties to the conflict have the primary responsibility to ensure compliance with IHL, to allow a space for impartial humanitarian action and to create safe conditions for our life-saving activities. But all the 196 signatory states have committed not only to respect, but also to ensure respect for IHL. Making this a political priority, it is key that states exert a positive influence in their interactions with their partners and allies. 
Let me also underline that our role as a neutral humanitarian intermediary between belligerent is of the essence. It often contributes to restoring or preserving a peace-enabling environment, which is key to care-out space for negotiations and violence de-escalation. This of course in the interest of millions of people impacted by armed conflicts, but also in the interest of everyone, big powers and smaller states alike.

As you are all acutely aware, Poland has greatly suffered in past wars waged on its territory. To this day, many families are still coping with the long-term and residual consequences of those conflicts. 

I wish to commend our Polish Red Cross colleagues who are still actively searching for information on people who disappeared during the World War II: since 1944, they have received some 4.5 million enquiries of relatives searching for their loved ones. Today, they also collect enquiries and support families of the people who went missing or were taken prisoner due to the conflict between the Russian Federation and Ukraine.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Fast scientific and technological advances profoundly affect the way wars are waged. Today, Poland and the whole region are not spared from the impact of dis-information. Deliberate spread of harmful information poses heightened risks for civilians in armed conflicts.
We witness the worrying spread of harmful information online as an extension of conflict into the cyber- and information space. We do actively address the use of disinformation for military purposes with states, non-state actors, and tech companies to ensure that humanitarian impacts in conflicts are duly considered in policy decisions. We also engage in inter-governmental processes on the regulation of autonomous weapons, which is an urgent task.

Over the past months, students in Poland were invited to think and write about the way harmful narratives impacts people protected by international humanitarian law in armed conflict. Let me congratulate the winners of this national essay competition, who are with us today. Kudos for your great work!
I am also proud to inaugurate – together with Mr. Ambassador Filliez - the exhibition Dialogues on Humanity that we have co-produced with Switzerland and the Photo Museum in Lausanne. This exhibition aims to establish a dialogue between art and humanitarian action on our fundamental humanitarian principles - such as neutrality and impartiality – and issues such as harmful information. I invite you to have a look and hope it will stimulate further dialogue and reflections. 

Thank you.