Друштво народа ‒ организација проистекла из Првог светског рата и вододелница нове ере дипломатије
League of Nations – The Organization Emerged from the First World War and Watershed of the New Era of Diplomacy

Summary/Abstract: The foundation of the first international organization (League of Nations) in 1919 makes the breakup with traditional diplomacy. This diplomacy is known as „old diplomacy“, and represented the system of interrelations between the government of sovereign states. Such system relied on the diplomats exchange or ministers responsible to act as the representatives and information transmitters. As the information transmitters, ambassadors acted as „people present on the spot “informing their governments on the internal situation of the country where they perform their duty. As mediators, ambassadors represent their state and protect interests of their governments before the state where they were accredited in order to encourage amicable relationships between two countries. These are positive sides of old diplomacy. Negative sides tackles its conservativeness and secretions. During the 19th century diplomatic institutions are modernized as attachés for military, cultural and economic issues, which are added to diplomatic personnel. The shortcomings of old diplomacy was tried to be made up for by the first organization of universal character founded on the 28th of April 1919. It represented the compromise between the system of collective security and sovereignty of states. A great role in the foundation of the League of Nations was played by Woodrow Wilson, who based it on the critics of the system of balance of power. In his famous 14 points he emphasized the principles of new diplomacy based upon liberalism with realistic guarantees. The League of Nations showed some drawbacks, since it had been founded by the winners and prevented by the right to veto the sanctions to be applied on them. The war remained as a supreme means to right acquisition – ultima razio. It could not manage to solve the conflict between collective security and sovereignty, what was one of the main reasons USA did not acted to the Covenant. They feared that the article 16. of the Covenant might undermine American sovereignty and constitutional power of the Senate to declare the war.

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