International mediation marked a significant milestone on May 30, 2025 with the establishment of the International Organization for Mediation (IOMed), the world’s first inter-governmental international legal organisation devoted to the use of mediation in resolving international disputes.
More than 80 countries and 20 international organisations, including the United Nations, sent senior representatives to Hong Kong to witness the signing ceremony of the Convention on the Establishment of the IOMed. Altogether, 33 countries signed the Convention on-site, making them the founding members of the IOMed.
China’s Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi
Communist Party of China Central Committee Political Bureau Member and China’s Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi attended the ceremony, and was the first to sign the Convention on behalf of China. Addressing the ceremony, Wang said that, as an innovative step in international rule of law, the IOMed has great significance in the history of international relations. The IOMed will be headquartered in Hong Kong, whose handover is itself a success story of peaceful settlement of international disputes.
Chief Executive John Lee
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Chief Executive John Lee thanked the Central Government for its staunch support of Hong Kong, and the international community for placing their trust and confidence in the city.
“The IOMed will provide a pathway for countries – regardless of culture, language and legal system – to resolve international disputes based on mutual respect and understanding. This is increasingly important amid mounting geopolitical tensions,” Lee said.
He underscored that the IOMed reflected a shared confidence in mediation as a peaceful means to maintain international peace and security, as stipulated in the Charter of the United Nations. He also set out Hong Kong’s advantages as an effective “super connector” and “super value-adder”, and said the city would actively promote the IOMed’s valuable work in settling international disputes through mediation.
“Despite geopolitical turbulence, Hong Kong builds bridges, not walls,” Lee said. “Under our unique ‘one country, two systems’ principle, Hong Kong is the only world city that enjoys both the China advantage and the global advantage. We are the only common law jurisdiction in China, and the only jurisdiction in the world with a bilingual common law system in both Chinese and English. We have a long tradition of the rule of law, and our courts exercise their judicial power independently.”
The IOMed headquarters will be located at the site of the former Wan Chai Police Station, once renovation of the Grade 2 historic building is completed.
