Published on 18 August 2026

The history of the CCNR and Switzerland’s accession

The history of the Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine (CCNR) began in 1815 at the Congress of Vienna. Already at that time, states recognized that cross-border challenges could only be addressed through joint efforts. This conviction gave rise to an organization that continues to shape international cooperation on the Rhine to this day. Despite political upheavals, wars and crises, the CCNR has maintained its continuity and relevance for over two centuries. It is therefore considered the oldest international organization still in existence in modern history. For many years, Switzerland has made an important contribution to its further development and has been committed to safe, sustainable and future-oriented navigation on the Rhine.

The CCNR is the oldest international organization in modern history. Its origins date back to the Congress of Vienna in 1815. — © Public Domain

• 1. Background: the Congress of Vienna (1815)

  At the Congress of Vienna in 1815, the principle of free navigation on international rivers was established for the first time. The call for the establishment of a central commission for Rhine navigation was directed at the riparian states of the Rhine, with the exception of Switzerland.

  At this time, the Swiss Confederation was in a phase of internal political reorganisation:

  • the cantons had only just regained their sovereignty.
  • They were at odds with each other and primarily pursued particular cantonal interests.
  • The Federal Treaty of 1815 gave the federal authorities only very limited foreign policy powers.

  Against this background, Switzerland did not apply to take part in the central commission envisaged by the Congress of Vienna and initially showed no interest in participating.

• 2. Scant interest during the 19th century

  In the first half of the 19th century, the Rhine played only a minor role as a transport route for Switzerland. With the advent of the railway, which was faster and more flexible, freight transport increasingly shifted to rail. The expansion of new railway lines between the major European ports and inland areas meant that navigation on the Rhine above Strasbourg as far as Basel came to an almost complete standstill. It was only in the course of industrialisation towards the end of the 19th century that Rhine shipping became significantly more important for Switzerland's foreign trade. Despite this development, Switzerland initially held back: because of its policy of neutrality, it wanted to avoid giving the impression of becoming dependent on a major European power.

  The first steamboat to reach Basel was the Stadt Frankfurt in 1832, but it took until 1904 for Rhine shipping to take off in Switzerland, when the first train of barges with 300 tonnes of coal arrived in Basel.

• 3. First overtures around 1900

  At the beginning of the 20th century, Switzerland began to take an institutional interest in Rhine navigation issues for the first time and took steps towards joining the Mannheim Convention. Switzerland sent a diplomatic note to Germany, which held a dominant position in the CCNR at the time. However, Germany refused. The Federal Council interpreted this to mean that there were fears of a possible voting alliance between the Netherlands and Switzerland, with the result that the two countries could gain political leverage in decisions on common shipping issues. Following this rejection, Switzerland initially put the matter to rest.

• 4. New framework conditions after the First World War

  Only after the First World War did the situation change fundamentally, with Switzerland's institutional status in the CCNR being reassessed. In April 1920, a senior Swiss official declared that – alongside the question of the League of Nations – free access to the sea was Switzerland's most important foreign policy issue. The Rhine was the only waterway through which Switzerland could gain free, safe and politically reliable access to the sea. The Swiss government adopted a clear stance at the beginning of the Paris Peace Conference in January 1919, invoking the right of all peoples to free access to the sea proclaimed by US President Woodrow Wilson in 1918, and calling for institutionalised protection for Swiss access to the Rhine.

  The Paris Peace Conference recognised this concern. The Treaty of Versailles ultimately granted Switzerland full membership status in the CCNR in 1921, without formally ratifying the Mannheimer Act, as it intended to wait for the planned revision of the act, which, however, took several years.

• 5. Developments after the Second World War

  With the outbreak of the Second World War, the activities of the CCNR were suspended. After the end of the war, the CCNR was re-established, initially in a provisional form that took into account the special political circumstances of the post-war period, in particular the still unresolved situation in Germany. Switzerland remained a member of the CCNR and accepted this transitional solution, thereby contributing to the institutional continuity of the CCNR.

  However, work was resumed under difficult conditions. Extraordinary measures were necessary due to war damage to infrastructure and the course of the Rhine itself, unfavourable climatic conditions, and the complex occupation situation in Germany. During this phase, the CCNR took on additional tasks with the primary aim of restoring the freedom of navigation on the Rhine. At the same time, its technical, economic and legal competences were significantly expanded, further consolidating its position as the central regulatory authority for navigation on the Rhine.

  In the international environment of the post-war period, the CCNR was confronted with a growing number of new international organisations. Some of these were subordinate to the United Nations (UN), while others represented early steps toward a unified Europe, such as the European Economic Community (EEC) and later the European Community (EC). The CCNR thus became part of an extensive network of organizations with which it cooperated on technical, social, and economic matters. At the same time, however, it was required to firmly safeguard its competences and the autonomy of the Rhine regime against efforts to integrate it into broader European structures.

• 6. The Revision of the Mannheim Convention in 1963

  Significant tensions between the member states of the CCNR, geopolitical developments in the post-war period, and the growing number of international organizations led to a limitation of the CCNR’s enforcement powers. In the long term, this made it necessary to strengthen its role and to revise its normative framework.

  By the late 1950s, there was a clear need to adapt to the new circumstances, which led to the revision of the Mannheim Convention on 20 November 1963. While its fundamental principles remained unchanged, key modifications concerned the presidency, decision-making procedures, and judicial functions. In this context, France lost one of its last privileges stemming from the Treaty of Versailles and had to relinquish its permanent presidency in favor of a rotating system, under which the presidency would henceforth be held by a member state for a period of two years. Switzerland, which had previously only signed the modus vivendi, ratified the Mannheim Convention in 1964 following its revision.

• 7. The CCNR in the Context of European Integration

  The geopolitical transformations in Central and Eastern Europe triggered by the fall of the Berlin Wall opened up entirely new perspectives. During the 1990s, a European inland waterway area gradually emerged. Through several European regulations, a regime comparable to that of the Rhine was established across the European Community, ensuring the free movement of goods in inland navigation. In this context, the CCNR was also confronted with the question of cooperation with Eastern European countries, particularly the Danube states. As a result of economic liberalization in these countries, the idea of a pan-European inland waterway network developed, structured along a new East–West axis extending from the North Sea to the Black Sea and even as far as Russia.

  At the beginning of the new millennium, the CCNR faced the fundamental question of its role within this new architecture of European inland navigation. Formally, its competence remained limited to the Rhine. In practice, however, its regulatory framework increasingly served as a standard for many other European waterways. At the same time, calls for the creation of an independent, European Union (EU) regulatory framework for inland navigation grew louder, temporarily calling existing institutions — including the CCNR — into question. The CCNR was at times perceived as a potential source of fragmentation within the emerging European inland navigation system. This tension appeared paradoxical, given that inland waterway transport in Europe continued to be concentrated primarily on the Rhine and its connected waterways, including the Main, the Main-Danube Canal, the Mittelland Canal, the Moselle, and the Meuse. The anticipated increase in traffic on other rivers — such as the Danube, Sava, Elbe, Rhône, and Po – failed to materialize. Instead, the Rhine remained the central backbone of European inland navigation, accounting for around 70% of total traffic volume.

• 8. Integration of the CCNR Regulatory Framework into the Emerging European Framework

  Both the CCNR and the EU recognized that inland navigation required further legal and regulatory integration. Against this background, the CCNR, in cooperation with the European Commission and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), worked toward integrating its regulatory framework more closely into the European system. In the 2000s, several important developments took place in this regard. Switzerland, for example, initiated the adoption of the so-called Basel Erklärung during its CCNR presidency from 2006 to 2007. This declaration aimed to deepen institutional cooperation between the CCNR and the EU in the field of inland navigation.

  A major milestone in this cooperation was the establishment of the European Committee for drawing up Standards in the field of Inland Navigation (CESNI) in 2015 by the CCNR and the EU. Since then, the committee has been responsible for developing technical standards for vessels, professional qualifications, and information technology in inland navigation. Its members consist of the member states of both the CCNR and the EU. Switzerland participates on an equal footing with the other CCNR and EU member states in the development and implementation of these standards.

• 9. Challenges and developments from the 1990s to the present

  In the 1990s, environmental groups gained increasing influence. As a result, several programmes were launched in Europe aimed at the rehabilitation of the Rhine and the restoration of its ecosystems. The CCNR also engaged actively in environmental protection within the scope of its activities, for example in relation to the transport of dangerous goods on the Rhine and through the prohibition of discharges of oil, oil residues, and liquid fuels. In addition, the CCNR set out to establish uniform rules for the collection, delivery, and reception of ship-generated waste. To this end, the Convention on the Collection, Deposit and Reception of Waste in Rhine and Inland Navigation (CDNI) was adopted. Its entry into force was delayed until 2009, as the ratification process proved particularly difficult in several countries.

  With the advancement of new technologies, automation and digitalization have become central topics for the CCNR. In the field of vessel automation, the CCNR already defined different levels of automation in inland navigation at the international level in 2018, thereby establishing an important reference framework for further developments.

Henri Walther and the Swiss contribution to the CCNR

A particularly visible contribution from Switzerland to the work of the CCNR manifested itself in the person of Henri Walther. Educated in law in Switzerland and Paris, he specialised early on in the law of navigation, in particular the law of the Rhine. He joined the CCNR in 1929 and headed its secretariat before the Second World War. During the interruption of the CCNR's activities due to the war, he ensured the continuity of the institution with great personal commitment, in particular by preserving its archives.

After his appointment as secretary general in 1946, Walther played a central role in the reconstruction and institutional consolidation of the CCNR in post-war Europe. Under his leadership, the CCNR adapted to the new political framework without sacrificing its legal independence. Due to his exceptional legal expertise and his in-depth knowledge of the Rhine regime, Walther was held in high esteem by the delegations of the member states. His many years of service until his retirement in 1969 contributed significantly to the stability, authority and international recognition of the CCNR and highlighted the importance of Switzerland's contribution to the governance of Rhine navigation.