Smithsonian, Office of International Relations & Programs

The Smithsonian Institution's Office of International Relations (OIR) provides logistical and diplomatic support for the Smithsonian's many re-search or museum programs abroad, and coordinates internally the overall foreign interests of the Institution. It also represents the Smithsonian externally, serving as the Institution's formal liaison with foreign institutions and individuals, with international organizations, and with government agencies. It is responsible for many technical details of the Smithsonian's international exchanges of museum objects and personnel, assisting Smithsonian staff in arranging access to foreign areas and materials, and handling the increasingly complex regulations governing international travel by collaborating colleagues here to the Smithsonian or to other American museums and zoos.