The Advisory Service on International Humanitarian Law of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) organized a Regional Expert Meeting for Latin American Countries on 13 and 14 May 2002 in Lima (Peru) on the subject “To protect cultural property in the event of armed conflict: implementation of international regulations in this field at national level”. The meeting was held with the support of the Peruvian authorities, the National Institute of Culture and the National Commission for the Study and Application of International Humanitarian Law. After a previous expert meeting on the protection of cultural property during hostilities, which took place in Chavannes-de-Bogis (Geneva) on 5 and 6 October 2000, this was the first decentralized meeting.

The Law of the Republic of Armenia on the use and protection of the emblems of the red cross and red crescent was adopted on 5 February 2002, was promulgated on 2 March 2002 and entered into force the same day. It sets out rules for the emblem's use as a protective device (by the medical and religious personnel of the armed forces, troops of the Ministry of the Interior, border guards, other military formations and public authorities responsible for action in emergencies, civilian medical units, and the medical personnel of the Armenian Red Cross Society and other National Red Cross or Red Crescent Societies) and as an indicative device (by bodies belonging to the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and, in peacetime, by authorized ambulances and aid stations providing free treatment to the injured and sick). The law also mentions the use by organizations that do not need any special authorization (the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies) and includes rules on the distinctive emblems and the names “Red Cross” and “Red Crescent”. It states that any person who violates the law will be held accountable by virtue of the legislation of Armenia. In the event of contradictions between the law and treaties listed in the law itself, the treaties take precedence.

La mise en œuvre nationale du droit international humanitaire est un processus permanent, qui nécessite la coopération de divers ministères et/ou autorités nationales. La création de Commissions nationales de mise en œuvre du droit international humanitaire peut done constituer, même s'il ne s'agit pas d'une obligation au regard du droit international humanitaire, un moyen efficace d'assurer l'adoption de mesures nationales par les États. Cette idée a été lancée, puis confirmée, par plusieurs recommandations et résolutions adoptées dans le cadre de réunions internationales.