| Embassies From All Over The World Are Found All Over The World |
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Embassies are, in the strictest sense, the diplomatic mission made up of an ambassador and other personnel who come to a country from another sovereign nation. The building or headquarters of the mission is technically called a chancery, although common usage often calls it an embassy. Countries and entities, such as the Vatican, have missions abroad for purposes of promoting friendly relations, furthering economic and cultural exchange, and giving aid to their own citizens in the host country. There are a lot of misconceptions about embassies. The actual buildings and grounds are not tiny footprints of a country on foreign soil. Rather, the compound is under the jurisdiction of the hose country, in compliance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. The idea that an embassy belongs to its country of origin arises from the diplomatic immunity awarded to is personnel and to the fact that the host country cannot enter the premises without permission. A diplomatic corps is headed by an ambassador. If the ambassador is recalled to his nation during a dispute, the mission is left to the supervision of a 'charge d'affaires', who is often the Deputy Chief of Missions. Within a commonwealth of nations, such as the United Kingdom, member countries host 'legations' from other members, headed by a consul rather than an ambassador. This is also the case among the countries of the European Union. Unrecognized nations also have legations, while some countries refer to their diplomatic missions as representations. Only permanent diplomatic missions get embassy status. Calling the actual building the embassy has become accepted because it is done so often. News headlines refer to 'demonstrating outside the embassy' or 'inside the gates of the embassy'. An ambassador does not necessarily reside in the compound where his office and those of his staff are located. Having a diplomatic mission in another countries is important. For this reason, the island of Taiwan has an embassy in Washington, D. C., as does the Peoples Republic of China; since each government claims to be the legitimate one. When a country takes the drastic step of cutting diplomatic ties with another, all diplomatic personnel will be withdrawn. Having embassies is also important when nationals of the countries of origin need help when they encounter trouble in the host nation. |
