UNITED NATIONS — They meet in the predawn darkness outside Central Park, less than two miles from the United Nations, where many of them often encounter one another, exchanging knowing glances or a runner-to-runner handshake.

Chugging through the dimly lit park on a 30-minute jog, they pass dog walkers, other runners and the occasional homeless person, stopping on a bridge midway through for a group photo and selfies.

You might mistake them for tourists.

But they are a group of ambassadors and other diplomats who call themselves the “PRunners” — named for the titles held by many as permanent representatives to the United Nations.

On a recent morning, they convened in a frigid pre-winter chill. Many wore white team shirts embossed with “PRunners” and the hashtag #NoExcuses. The range of other attire reflected their varying tolerances for the cold.

Richard Arbeiter, the deputy permanent representative of Canada, was hatless and wore shorts. Amal Mudallali, the permanent representative of Lebanon, wore long pants, a jacket, and a headband around her ears.

When the Scandinavian diplomats exclaimed that the weather was great for running, Ivana Pajevic, the deputy permanent representative of Montenegro, responded: “Ha! Only if you’re Nordic!”

The group invited me, an editor on The New York Times’s International desk who often covers the United Nations, to run with them. (I dressed for the cold: sweatpants, wool cap, hoodie and windbreaker, and managed not to be last.)

The diplomats may not always agree on proper running attire or on everything in world affairs. But their weekly runs have bonded them in ways often missing in other gatherings of disparate United Nations diplomats — like the Security Council or Human Rights Council.

“For me, the runners group is a bit like going to the sauna — everyone is equal,” said Kai Sauer, Finland’s permanent representative, who coordinates and often leads the runs. “Diplomacy is very hierarchical, but we leave our titles at home when we enter Central Park. It’s more about human than professional interaction.”

Mr. Sauer, who has run seven marathons, said he never canceled the runs. And unlike the fuzzy start times of many United Nations meetings, Mr. Sauer insists that everyone arrive promptly at 6:30 a.m. — “no exceptions.”

Still, the group, which ranges in age from 40 to 60, applies the United Nations slogan “No One Left Behind” in practice. “If necessary, I run with the slowest runner,” Mr. Sauer said.

It is “simply a positive group,” he added.

Founded by the representatives of Finland and Liechtenstein a few summers ago, the group includes members from Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Latvia, Lebanon, Mongolia, Montenegro, New Zealand, Norway, Palau, Portugal, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland and Tunisia.

Diplomats from the United Nations Department of Public Information and the International Committee of the Red Cross have also joined.

And the runners have sometimes invited family members or visiting dignitaries, like the foreign ministers of Germany, Lebanon and Liechtenstein and the deputy prime minister of Slovakia, to come along, making the event something of an international mélange akin to a mini New York City Marathon.

The former ambassador from Britain, Matthew Rycroft, and outgoing ambassador from Iran, Gholam-Ali Khoshroo, used to run with the group, although whether they ever talked about their political disagreements while huffing along together is unclear. (Their shared fondness of running had nothing to do with their departures, other members said.)

A replacement for Mr. Khoshroo has not been announced yet. But the Britain-Iran running fellowship is not expected to resume anytime soon. Karen Pierce, Mr. Rycroft’s successor, has made clear her disdain for the predawn tradition of donning jogging suits and sneakers.

“I will most certainly not be joining the group,” she said when asked recently. “I wear stilettos.”

Not many female diplomats are in the group — only the representatives from Lebanon, Montenegro, Palau and Belgium. This is a shortcoming readily acknowledged by Mr. Sauer and Ms. Pajevic of Montenegro, who is the president of the executive board of U.N. Women, a group that promotes gender equality.

“I agree that we should have more women on board for running,” Ms. Pajevic said.

It is unclear whether Ambassador Nikki R. Haley of the United States, who has said she is leaving her post at year’s end, ever considered joining the group. A spokesman for the American Mission to the United Nations declined to comment.

The runners have not gone unnoticed by Secretary General António Guterres, but he has shown no inclination to participate.

“The Secretary General thinks this is a great way to keep ambassadors fit for marathon U.N. meetings,” said his spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric. “He will be cheering them on from the sidelines.”

While the banter on the runs may veer into politics or the day’s meetings, it can also focus on aching joints and issues faced by working parents.

Part of the reason for the predawn timing, some members said, was that they needed to get home to shower and ready their children for school.

Many live in the diplomatic residences that dot the Manhattan east-side neighborhood adjoining Central Park, but some live as far away as Brooklyn and take the subway or a taxi to avoid violating Mr. Sauer’s strictly enforced start-time deadline.

The group has become known as one of the more tightly knit networks among the diplomats who periodically rotate through United Nations missions in New York. Several ambassadors besides Mr. Sauer are marathoners, and celebrate their running accomplishments with each other via social media and WhatsApp.

Craig Hawke, the permanent representative of New Zealand, who ran his first New York City Marathon this year, called the Central Park jogs a welcome start to the day and “incredibly cathartic.”

Ms. Mudallali of Lebanon said she had learned about the group on Facebook while living in Washington, and wanted to join when she arrived last year as Lebanon’s first female ambassador to the United Nations.

Still, Ms. Mudallali said, she did not share the passion of her northern-climate counterparts to run in the snow.

“I’m from Lebanon,” she said.

The camaraderie was clear at a recent goodbye dinner held at Mr. Sauer’s residence for the departing permanent representative from Denmark, Ib Petersen, one of the earliest members.

Mr. Sauer even brought in a Finnish wildlife chef, Mika Manninen, to prepare the meal: salmon soup, eggplant lasagna and filet of beef. (Wild game like venison was unavailable, Mr. Manninen said.)

After toasts around the table of generously poured shots of Finlandia vodka, Mr. Petersen led the envoys in a somewhat off-key rendition of The Beatles’ “With a Little Help From My Friends.”

Follow Rick Gladstone on Twitter: @rickgladstone

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