Diplomatic bag
Encyclopedia
A diplomatic bag, also known as a diplomatic pouch is a kind of receptacle used by diplomatic mission
s. The physical concept of a "diplomatic bag" is flexible and therefore can take many forms e.g. an envelope, parcel, large suitcase or shipping container, etc. The most important point is that as long as it is externally marked to show its status, the "bag" has diplomatic immunity
from search or seizure, as codified in article 27 of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations
. It may only contain articles intended for official use. It need not be a bag; in fact, no size limit is specified by the convention. It is often escorted by a diplomatic courier
, who is similarly immune from arrest and detention.
, the diplomatic bag is conventionally used as an example of the ultimate secure channel
used to exchange keys
, codebook
s, and other necessarily secret materials. Like Alice and Bob
, it is an example of a metasyntactic variable
when used this way.
In actual practice, diplomatic bags are indeed used for exactly this purpose. An illustration is the strenuous protest made by German
diplomats in Poland
in the late 1920s when a cypher machine being shipped to the German Warsaw
Embassy a commercial version of the famous Enigma machine
was mistakenly not marked as protected baggage and was opened, under protest, by Polish Customs. It was released to them, supposedly without much apology (and with still more protest), on the following Monday, but had been thoroughly inspected by Polish cryptography personnel over the weekend.
Diplomatic mission
A diplomatic mission is a group of people from one state or an international inter-governmental organisation present in another state to represent the sending state/organisation in the receiving state...
s. The physical concept of a "diplomatic bag" is flexible and therefore can take many forms e.g. an envelope, parcel, large suitcase or shipping container, etc. The most important point is that as long as it is externally marked to show its status, the "bag" has diplomatic immunity
Diplomatic immunity
Diplomatic immunity is a form of legal immunity and a policy held between governments that ensures that diplomats are given safe passage and are considered not susceptible to lawsuit or prosecution under the host country's laws...
from search or seizure, as codified in article 27 of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations
Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations
The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961 is an international treaty that defines a framework for diplomatic relations between independent countries. It specifies the privileges of a diplomatic mission that enable diplomats to perform their function without fear of coercion or...
. It may only contain articles intended for official use. It need not be a bag; in fact, no size limit is specified by the convention. It is often escorted by a diplomatic courier
Diplomatic courier
A diplomatic courier is an official who transports diplomatic bags as sanctioned under the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. Couriers are granted diplomatic immunity and are thereby protected by the receiving state from arrest and detention when performing their work...
, who is similarly immune from arrest and detention.
Cryptography
In discussions of cryptographyCryptography
Cryptography is the practice and study of techniques for secure communication in the presence of third parties...
, the diplomatic bag is conventionally used as an example of the ultimate secure channel
Secure channel
In cryptography, a secure channel is a way of transferring data that is resistant to interception and tampering.A confidential channel is a way of transferring data that is resistant to interception, but not necessarily resistant to tampering....
used to exchange keys
Key (cryptography)
In cryptography, a key is a piece of information that determines the functional output of a cryptographic algorithm or cipher. Without a key, the algorithm would produce no useful result. In encryption, a key specifies the particular transformation of plaintext into ciphertext, or vice versa...
, codebook
Codebook
A codebook is a type of document used for gathering and storing codes. Originally codebooks were often literally books, but today codebook is a byword for the complete record of a series of codes, regardless of physical format.-Cryptography:...
s, and other necessarily secret materials. Like Alice and Bob
Alice and Bob
The names Alice and Bob are commonly used placeholder names for archetypal characters in fields such as cryptography and physics. The names are used for convenience; for example, "Alice sends a message to Bob encrypted with his public key" is easier to follow than "Party A sends a message to Party...
, it is an example of a metasyntactic variable
Metasyntactic variable
In computer science, programmers use metasyntactic variables to describe a placeholder name or an alias term commonly used to denote the subject matter under discussion or an arbitrary member of a class of things under discussion...
when used this way.
In actual practice, diplomatic bags are indeed used for exactly this purpose. An illustration is the strenuous protest made by German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
diplomats in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
in the late 1920s when a cypher machine being shipped to the German Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
Embassy a commercial version of the famous Enigma machine
Enigma machine
An Enigma machine is any of a family of related electro-mechanical rotor cipher machines used for the encryption and decryption of secret messages. Enigma was invented by German engineer Arthur Scherbius at the end of World War I...
was mistakenly not marked as protected baggage and was opened, under protest, by Polish Customs. It was released to them, supposedly without much apology (and with still more protest), on the following Monday, but had been thoroughly inspected by Polish cryptography personnel over the weekend.
Violations
Some countries with corrupt governments have allegedly used diplomatic immunity to smuggle drugs, which was mentioned by English journalist Tony Thompson in his book Gangs: A Journey into the Heart of the British Underworld.- During World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Winston ChurchillWinston ChurchillSir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
reportedly received shipments of Cuban cigars by this means. - In 1964, a Moroccan-born IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i double agent named Mordechai Ben Masoud Louk (also known as Josef Dahan) was drugged, bound, and placed in a diplomatic bag at the EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian Embassy in RomeRomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, but was rescued by the Italians. The crate that he had been placed in appeared to have been used for a similar purpose before, possibly for an Egyptian military official who had defected to Italy several years before but then disappeared without a trace before reappearing under Egyptian custody and facing trial. - In the 1984 Dikko AffairDikko AffairThe Dikko Affair was a 1984 Nigerian military government attempt to kidnap Umaru Dikko, a former Nigerian civilian government minister living in United Kingdom, and secretly transport him back to Nigeria in a diplomatic bag...
, a former NigeriaNigeriaNigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
n government minister, was kidnapped and similarly treated, in an attempt to transport him from the United Kingdom back to Nigeria for trial. However, the bag was not marked as such, which allowed British customs to open it. - In 1984, the Sterling submachine gunSterling submachine gunThe Sterling submachine gun is a British submachine gun which was in service with the British Army from 1944 until 1994, when it was phased out with the introduction of the L85A1 assault rifle.-History:...
used to shoot dead WPC Yvonne FletcherYvonne FletcherWPC Yvonne Joyce Fletcher was a British police officer fatally shot during a protest outside the Libyan embassy at St. James's Square, London, in 1984. Fletcher, who had been on duty and deployed to police the protest, died shortly afterwards at Westminster Hospital...
from inside the LibyanLibyaLibya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
Embassy in London was smuggled out of the UK in one of 21 diplomatic bags. - In March 2000 ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
created an international incident when it opened a British diplomatic shipment.
External links
- eDiplomat.com: Glossary of Diplomatic Terms
- Is there such a thing as a diplomatic pouch? — Straight DopeStraight DopeThe Straight Dope is a popular question-and-answer newspaper column published in the Chicago Reader, syndicated in thirty newspapers in the United States and Canada, as well as being available and archived at the .-Newspapers:...
article with extensive detailed references.