The following are the most important abbreviations

(Except from THIMUN Reports Book)

ABM = Anti-Ballistic Missile

AIDS = Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome

AOSIS = Alliance of Small Island States, est. 1990, Washington, D.C., USA

APEC = Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation

ASEAN = Association of South-East Asian Nations, Jakarta, Indonesia

BWC = Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological, Biological and Toxic Weapons and on their Destruction (The Biological Weapons Convention), signed and ratified on 10 April 1972

CASA = Coordination Action on Small Arms, part of UN Department for Disarmament Affairs

CEAFRD = Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, 1965

CEDAW = Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women, 18 December 1979

CERD = Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination or Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

CERF = Central Emergency Revolving Fund, est. 19 Dec. 1991 by UN Resolution A/46/182

CFC = Chlorofluorocarbons

CHR = Centre for Human Rights

CND = United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs, Vienna, Austria

COP = Conference Of Parties, Supreme Body of the UNCCD

COPUOS = Committee on the Peaceful Use of Outer Space

CRC = Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted on 20 November 1989, entered into force on 2 September 1990 or Committee on the Rights of the Child

CSD = United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development

CSTD = Commission on Science and Development

CTBT = Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty, 10 September 1996

CTBTO = Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Organisation, Preparatory Commission in Vienna, Austria

CWC = Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction, London, Moscow and Washington, 10 April 1972

DEVAW = Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, Dec. 1993

DHA = United Nations Department of Humanitarian Affairs, predecessor of OCHA

DPKO = United Nations Department of Peace Keeping Operations

ECA = Economic Commission for Africa, Addis Ababa,Ethiopia

ECLAC/CEPAL = Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, Santiago, Chile

ECOMOG = Economic Community of West African States Military Observer Group

ECOSOC = Economic and Social Council, New York, NY, US and Geneva, Switzerland

ECOWAS = Economic Community of West African States, est. 28 May 1975, Lome, Togo

EIF = Entry into Force

EMPFORM = Employment Forum (ILO)

ERF = Emergency Relief Coordinator

ESCAP = United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific,est. 1947, Bangkok, Thailand

EU = European Union, Brussels, Belgium

FAO = Food and Agriculture Organization, Rome, Italy

FCCC = Framework Convention on Climate Change, signed at the Rio Summit in 1992

FRY = Federal Republic of Yugoslavia

FYROM = Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

GA = General Assembly, New York, NY, United States

GATT = General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade predecessor of the WTO

GAW = Global Atmosphere Watch

GCOS = Global Climate Observing System, est. 1992, Geneva Switzerland

GDP = Gross Domestic Product

GEF = Global Environmental Facility

GM = Genetically Modified

GNP = Gross National Product

GRD = Global Resource Information Database, of the UNEP

HABITAT II = United Nations Conference on Human Settlements, Istanbul 1996, predecessor of UNDHS

HCHR = High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva, Switzerland

HIPC = Highly Indebted Poor Countries

HIV = Human Immunodeficiency Virus

HRW = Human Rights Watch, New York, NY, United States

IAEA = International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, Austria

IASC = Inter-Agency Standing Committee

IBRD = International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (aka World Bank),Washington, DC, United States

ICBL = International Campaign to Ban Landmines,  Resource Centre, Oslo, Norway

ICBM = InterContinental Ballistic Missiles

ICC = International Criminal Court, est. July 1998 in Rome, Italy

ICCP = Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to Its Country of Origin or Its Restitution in Case of Illicit Appropriation

ICJ = International Court of Justice, The Hague, The Netherlands

ICRIC = International Committee of the Red Cross, Geneva, Switzerland

ICTR = International Tribunal for Rwanda, Arusha, Tanzania

ICTY = International Criminal Tribunal for ex-Yugoslavia, The Hague, The Netherlands

IDA = International Development Association, Washington, DC, United States

IDF = Israeli Defence Force

IDPs = Internally Displaced Persons

IFAD = International Fund for Agriculture Development, Rome, Italy

IFCS = International Forum on Chemical Safety, est. April 1999, located at WHO, Geneva, Switzerland

IFOR = NATO Implementation Force

IFTDH = International Federation Terre des Hommes, Lausanne, Switzerland

IGO = InterGovernmental Organization

ILC = International Law Commission, New York, NY, United States

ILO = International Labor Organisation, Geneva, Switzerland

IMF = International Monetary Fund, Washington, DC, United State

IMO = International Maritime Organization, London, United Kingdom

INCB = International Narcotic Board, Vienna, Austria

INSTRAW = United Nations International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

INTERFET = International Force in East Timor, September 1999 – 23 February 2000

INTERPOL = International Police, Lyon, France

IOC = International Olympic Committee, Lausanne, Switzerland

IOMC = Inter-Organization Programme for the Sound Management of Chemicals,est. 1995, located at WHO, Geneva, Switzerland

IPCC = Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Control, est. 1988, Geneva, Switzerland

IPCS = International Programme on Chemical Safety, est. 1980, Geneva, Switzerland

IPEC = International Programme on the elimination of Child Labour, founded 1992 by the ILO

IPTF = International Police Task Force, Bosnia- Herzegovina

ISO = International Safety Organization, Geneva, Switzerland

ISS = International Space Station (NASA)

ITF = International Trust Fund

ITLOS = International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, Hamburg. Germany

ITU = International Telecommunication Union, Geneva, Switzerland

IWA = International Water Association, London, United Kingdom

KFOR = NATO Kosovo FORce

KLA = Kosovo Liberation Army

KTC = Kosovo Transitional Council

LAW = Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment, Jerusalem, Israel

LBT = Landmine Ban Treaty, also known as Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction

LDC = Less Developed Countries

LEDC = Less Economically Developed Countries

MEDC = Medium Economically Developed Countries

MIA = Missing in Action

MICAH = International Civilian Support Mission in Haiti, requested by Haiti’s President on 8 November 1999. Mission completed on 15 March 2000

MINURSO = United Nations  Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara, est. April 1999

MONUC= United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, est. 30 December 1999, Kinshasa, DR Congo

MUN = Model United Nations

NAFO = North Atlantic Fisheries Organization

NAFTA = North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement, Washington DC, United States

NAT = North Atlantic Treaty

NATO = North Atlantic Treaty Organization, est. 4 April 1949, Brussels, Belgium

NGO = Non-Governmental Organization

NPT = Treaty for the non-Proliferation of Weapons, 5 March 1970

NWFZ = Nuclear Weapon Free Zone

OAS = Organization of African States, Washington, DC, United States

OAU = Organization of African Unity, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

OCHA = Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Geneva, Switzerland

ODA = Official Development Assistance or Overseas Development Assistance

ODCCP = United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, Vienna, Austria

ODCP = United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, Vienna, Austria

OECD = Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development., Paris, France

OIC = Organization of the Islamic Conference, Geneva, Switzerland

OPB(T)W = Organization for the Prohibition of Biological (and Toxic) Weapons, to be established

OPCW = Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons,  The Hague, The Netherlands

OPEC = Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, Vienna, Austria

OSART = Operational Safety Review Team of the International Atomic Energy Agency

OSCE = Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Prague, Czech Republic

PICCR = Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens’ Rights, est. 1994, Ramallah, Palestine

PSMC = Palestine –Israeli Steering and Monitoring Committee

PLO = Palestinian Liberation Organization

PNA = Palestinian National Authority

POW = Prisoners of War

RUF = Revolutionary United Front, in Sierra Leone

SADC = Southern African Development Community, Gaberone, Botswana

SALT = Strategic Arms Limitation Talks

SFOR = NATO Stabilization FORce

SIDS = Small Island Developing States

SLA = Southern Lebanese Army

SPA = Special Program of Assistance for Sub-Saharan Africa

START = Stategic Arms Reduction Treaty, (1) 1991; (2) 1993

SID = Sexually Transmitted Diseases

UDHR = Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948

UN = United Nations, New York, NY, United States

UNAIDS = United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, Geneva, Switzerland

UNAMIC = United Nations Advance Mission in Cambodia, Nov 1991 – Mar 1992, predecessor of UNTAC, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

UNCCD = United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, Sept 1994

UNCHS = United Nations Centre for Human Settlements, formerly HABITAT, Nairobi, Kenya

UNCICP = United Nations Centre for International Crime Prevention, Vienna, Austria

UNCLOS = United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 16 Nov 1994

UNCOPUOS = United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Use of Outer Space

UNCPCJ = United Nations Centre for Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Program,est 1994, Vienna, Austria

UNCPCJD = United Nations Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Division

UNCSD = United Nations Commission for Sustainable Development, New York, NY, United States

UNCTAD = United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, Geneva, Switzerland

UNDCP = United Nations International Drug Control Program, Vienna, Austria

UNDESD = United Nations Department of Economic and Social Development

UNDHA = United Nations Department of Humanitarian Affairs, Geneva, Switzerland

UNDOF = United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, est. June 1974, Golan Heights

UNDP = United Nations Development Program, New York, NY, United States

UNDPI = United Nations Department of Public Information, New York, NY, United States

UNDRO = United Nations Disaster Relief Organization, Geneva, Switzerland

UNEP = United Nations Environment Program, Nairobi, Kenya

UNESCO = United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Paris, France

UNFCCC = United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Bonn, Germany

UNFDAC = United Nations Fund for Drug Abuse Control, Vienna, Austria

UNFICYP = United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus, est. 4 March 1964

UNFPA = United Nations Population Fund, New York NY, United States

UNHCHR = United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva, Switzerland

UNHCR = United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, Switzerland

UNICEF = United Nations Children’s Fund, New York, NY, United States

UNIDCP = United Nations International Drug Control Program, Vienna, Austria

UNIDIR = United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research, Geneva, Switzerland

UNIDO = United Nations Industrial Development Organization, Vienna, Austria

UNIFEM = United Nations Development Fund for Women, New York, NY, United States

UNITA = National Union for the Total Independence of Angola

UNITAR = United Nations Institute for Training and Research, New York, NY, United States

UNMAS = United Nations Mine Action Service

UNMIBH = United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina, est. by Security Council resolution 1035 (1995), Dec. 1995, Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina

UNMIK = United Nations Interim Administration in Kosovo, est. June 1999

UNMOGIP = United Nations Military Observer Group on India and Pakistan, est January 1949

UNMOP = United Nations Mission in Prevlaka, est. January 1996, Cavtat, Croatia

UNO = United Nations Organization(s)

UNOCHA = United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance,Geneva, Switzerland

UNODCCP = United Nations Office of Drug Control and Crime Prevention, Vienna, Austria

UNOMA = United Nations Observer Mission in Angola, 30 June 1997 – Feb 1999

UNOMIG = United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia, est. 24 August 1993, Suklumi, Georgia

UNOMSL = United Nations Observer Mission in Sierra Leone, July 1998 – October 1999, Freetown, Sierra Leone

UNOSOM = United Nations Operations in Somalia, April 1992 – March 1995, Mogadishu, Somalia

UNPO = United Nations and Peoples Organization, The Hague, The Netherlands

UNPREDEP = United Nations PREventive DEPloyment Force, March 1995 – Feb 1999, Skopje, FYR Macedonia

UNRISD = United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, Geneva, Switzerland

UNRWA = United Nations Relief and Works Agency, Vienna, Austria

UNSC = United Nations Staff College, Turin, Italyor United Nations Security Council

UNSCOM = United Nations Special Commission, New York, NY, United States

UNSMA = United Nations Special Mission to Afghanistan

UNTAC = United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia, March 1992 – Sep 1993, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

UNTAET = United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor, established pursuant to Security Council Resolution 1272 of 25 October 1999

UNV = United Nations Volunteers, Bonn, Germany

WFP = World Food Programme, Rome, Italy

WFUNA = World Federation of United Nations Associations in Geneva, New York, NY, United States

WHO = World Health Organization, Copenhagen, Denmark

WIPO = World Intellectual Organization, Geneva, Switzerland

WMO = World Meteorological Organization, Geneva, Switzerland

WRI = World Institute, Washington, DC, United States

WSP = World Solar Programme 1996-2005, established by UNESCO’s General Conference in October/November 1995

WSSD = World Summit on Social Development, 6-12 March 1995 in Copenhagen, Denmark

WTO = World Trade Organization, Geneva, Switzerland

WWF = World Wide Fund for Nature or: 2nd World Water Forum, held in The Hague in March 2000

YES = Youth Employment Summit, held in Alexandria, Egypt, 11-16 Sept. 2002