On 24th August 1994, the United Nations General Assembly granted the Order the status of Permenent Observer. Resolution A/RES/48/265 emphasizes "the long standing dedication of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta in providing humanitarian assistance and its special role in international humanitarian relations".

The main purpose of the Order's multilateral diplomacy is to develop relations with international and intergovernmental humanitarian organizations, to inform them about its activities and to define possible fields of cooperation and partnership.

The presence of the Order at numerous international conferences and meetings and its active contribution in fields such as emergency humanitarian relief, leprosy, AIDS, anti-personnel mines, illustrate the Order's role within the community of nations.

The Order is represented in a wide spectrum of international bodies at ambassadorial level, either by Permanent Observers (UN fmaily) or by Official Representatives:

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 For an updated list, visit the official website of the Order of Malta

United Nations Secretariat Programmes Specialized Agencies New York UN General Assembly Commissions Secretariat and other Bodies Geneva UN Office UNHCR - Refugees UNHCHR - Human Rights OCHA - Humanitarian Affairs WHO - Health WIPO - Intellectual Property Disarmament Paris UNESCO - Culture Rome FAO - Food WFP - Food Vienna UN Office UNIDO - Industrial Development IAEA - Atomic Agency UNDCP - Development & Cooperation

Other Organizations Geneva ICRC IFRC IOM Brussels European Commission International Committee of Military Medicine (ICMM) Strasbourg Council of Europe Washington Organization of Central American States Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Rome UNIDROIT San Remo Humanitarian Law - IIHL Santo Domingo - Paris Unión Latina

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