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PART FOUR

Legal questions

1271

In the cases Certain Activities carried out by Nica-ragua in the Border Area (Costa Rica v. Nicaragua) and Whaling in the Antarctic (Australia v. Japan), pleadings were submitted within the fixed time limits.

While there were no new developments in the case concerning Gabcikovo-Nagymaros Project (Hun-gary/Slovakia) [YUN 1998, p. 1186], the parties kept the Court informed of progress made in their negotia-tions. In the case Armed Activities on the Territory of the Congo (Democratic Republic of the Congo v. Uganda) [YUN 1999, p. 1209], the parties transmitted to the Court information concerning their negotiations to settle the question of reparation, as referred to in the 2005 judg-ment [YUN 2005, p. 1381]. Both cases remained pending.

The Court was seized of four new contentious cases in 2013. In the case concerning Aerial Herbicide Spraying (Ecuador v. Colombia), Ecuador informed the Court that it was discontinuing its proceedings against Colombia; the case was subsequently removed from the Court’s General List.

Icj activities in 2013 were covered in two re-ports to the General Assembly, for the periods 1 Au-gust 2012 to 31 July 2013 [A/68/4] and 1 August 2013 to 31 July 2014 [A/69/4]. On 31 October (decision 68/511), the General Assembly took note of the 2012/2013 report.

Contentious proceedings

Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Croatia v. Serbia)

On 2 July 1999 [YUN 1999, p. 1210], Croatia insti-tuted proceedings before the Court against Serbia, then known as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, for alleged violations of the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Geno-cide [YUN 1948–49, p. 959] committed between 1991 and 1995. In its application, Croatia contended that by directly controlling the activity of its armed forces, intelligence agents, and various paramilitary detach-ments on the territory of Croatia, Serbia was liable for ethnic cleansing of Croatian citizens. It requested the Court to adjudge and declare that Serbia had breached its legal obligations to Croatia under the Genocide Convention and that it had an obligation to pay to Croatia, in its own right and as parens patriae for its citizens, reparations for damages to persons and prop-erty, as well as to the Croatian economy and environ-

In 2013, the International Court of Justice (icj) deliv-ered two judgments, made 11 orders and had 14 con-tentious cases pending before it. In an October address to the General Assembly, the icj President, Judge Peter Tomka, noted that the Court had made every effort to meet the expectations of the parties appearing before it in a timely manner. He stressed that as the Court had been able to clear its backlog of cases, States could be confident that, as soon as they completed their writ-ten exchanges, the Court would move to the hearings stage without delay and do its utmost for the advance-ment of international justice and the peaceful settle-ment of disputes between States.

Judicial work of the Court

During 2013, the Court delivered its judgment on the merits in the cases concerning Frontier Dispute (Burkina Faso/Niger) and Request for Interpretation of the Judgment of 15 June 1962 in the Case concerning the Temple of Preah Vihear (Cambodia v. Thailand).

The Court held public hearings in the cases con-cerning Request for Interpretation of the Judgment of 15 June 1962 in the Case concerning the Temple of Preah Vihear (Cambodia v. Thailand), Whaling in the Antarctic (Australia v. Japan), Certain Activities car-ried out by Nicaragua in the Border Area (Costa Rica v. Nicaragua) and Construction of a Road in Costa Rica along the San Juan River (Nicaragua v. Costa Rica).

The Court or its President made orders on the con-duct of the proceedings in the cases concerning Aerial Herbicide Spraying (Ecuador v. Colombia), Whaling in the Antarctic (Australia v. Japan), Certain Activities car-ried out by Nicaragua in the Border Area (Costa Rica v. Nicaragua), Construction of a Road in Costa Rica along the San Juan River (Nicaragua v. Costa Rica), Obliga-tion to Negotiate Access to the Pacific Ocean (Bolivia v. Chile) and Question of the Delimitation of the Conti-nental Shelf between Nicaragua and Colombia beyond 200 nautical miles from the Nicaraguan Coast (Nica-ragua v. Colombia). The Court also made an order on the execution of its judgment in the case concerning Frontier Dispute (Burkina Faso/Niger). The President addressed a communication to the Prime Minister of Australia with regard to the request for the indication of provisional measures in the case concerning Ques-tions relating to the Seizure and Detention of Certain Documents and Data (Timor-Leste v. Australia).

Chapter I

International Court of Justice

1272 Part Four: Legal questions

YUN 2013—3rd proof—9 November 2017

concerning a dispute on the delimitation of the bound-ary between the maritime zones of the two States in the Pacific Ocean, beginning at a point on the coast called Concordia, the terminal point of the land boundary es-tablished pursuant to the Treaty of 3 June 1929; and in relation to the recognition in favour of Peru of a mari-time zone lying within 200 nautical miles of its coast, but which Chile considered to be part of the high seas.

Peru maintained that the maritime zones between Chile and Peru had never been delimited by agree-ment or otherwise. Peru stated that, since the 1980s, it had consistently endeavoured to negotiate the issues in dispute, but had constantly met with a refusal from Chile to enter into negotiations. It asserted that a note of 10 September 2004 from the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Chile to the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Peru made further attempts at negotiation impossible.

Peru, consequently, requested the Court to deter-mine the course of the boundary between the mari-time zones of the two States, and to adjudge and de-clare that Peru possessed exclusive sovereign rights in the maritime area situated within the limit of 200 nau-tical miles from its coast, but outside Chile’s exclusive economic zone or continental shelf.

As the basis for the Court’s jurisdiction, Peru in-voked article XXXI of the Pact of Bogotá of 1948, to which both States were parties.

By an order of 31 March 2008 [YUN 2008, p. 1399], the Court fixed 20 March 2009 and 9 March 2010 as the respective time limits for the filing of a memo-rial by Peru and a counter-memorial by Chile. Those pleadings were filed within the time limits. Bolivia, Colombia and Ecuador requested copies of the plead-ings and annexed documents produced in the case. The Court, after ascertaining the views of the parties, acceded to those requests.

By an order of 27 April 2010 [YUN 2010, p. 1279], the Court authorized the submission of a reply by Peru and a rejoinder by Chile. It fixed 9 November 2010 and 11 July 2011 as the respective time limits for the filing of those pleadings, which were filed within the time limits.

Public hearings were held from 3 to 14 Decem-ber 2012 [YUN 2012, p. 1258], at the end of which the parties presented their final submissions to the Court.

Peru requested the Court to adjudge and declare that the delimitation between the respective maritime zones was a line starting at “Point Concordia” (de-fined as the intersection with the low-water mark of a 10-kilometre radius arc, having as its centre the first bridge over the River Lluta of the Arica-La Paz railway) and equidistant from the baselines of both parties, up to a point 200 nautical miles from those baselines; and that, beyond the point where the common maritime border ended, Peru was entitled to exercise exclusive sovereign rights over a maritime area lying out to 200 nautical miles from its baselines.

ment caused by those violations of international law in a sum to be determined by the Court.

As basis for the Court’s jurisdiction, Croatia in-voked article IX of the Genocide Convention, to which, it claimed, both States were parties.

By an order of 14 September 1999 [YUN 1999, p. 1210], the Court fixed 14 March and 14 September 2000 as the respective time limits for the filing of a memorial by Croatia and a counter-memorial by Serbia. Those limits were twice extended by orders made during 2000 [YUN 2000, p. 1219]. Croatia filed its memorial within the extended time limit. On 11 September 2002 [YUN 2002, p. 1268], within the extended time limit for filing its counter-memorial, Serbia filed certain preliminary ob-jections on jurisdiction and admissibility. The proceed-ings on the merits were suspended, in accordance with article 79 of the Rules of Court. Croatia filed a state-ment of its observations and submissions on Serbia’s preliminary objections on 25 April 2003 [YUN 2003, p. 1304], within the time limit fixed by the Court.

At the conclusion of public hearings on the prelimi-nary objections on jurisdiction and admissibility, held from 26 to 30 May 2008, the parties presented final submissions to the Court [YUN 2008, p. 1395].

In its judgment, rendered on 18 November 2008 [ibid.], the Court found that, subject to its statement concerning the second preliminary objection raised by Serbia, it had jurisdiction, on the basis of article IX of the Genocide Convention, to entertain Croatia’s application, adding that Serbia’s second preliminary objection did not possess an exclusively preliminary character. It then rejected the third preliminary objec-tion submitted by Serbia.

By an order of 20 January 2009 [YUN 2009, p. 1269], the President of the Court fixed 22 March 2010 as the time limit for the filing of the counter-memorial by Serbia. That pleading, containing counter-claims, was filed within the time limit.

By an order of 4 February 2010 [YUN 2010, p. 1275], the Court directed the submission of a reply by Croatia and a rejoinder by Serbia concerning the claims pre-sented by the parties. It fixed 20 December 2010 and 4 November 2011, respectively, as the time limits for the filing of those pleadings, which were filed within the time limits.

By an order of 23 January 2012 [YUN 2012, p. 1256], the Court authorized the submission by Croatia of an addi-tional pleading relating solely to Serbia’s counter-claims, and fixed 30 August 2012 as the time limit for the fil-ing, which was filed within the time limit. Public hear-ings on the merits of the case were scheduled for 2014.

Maritime Dispute (Peru v. Chile)

On 16 January 2008 [YUN 2008, p. 1399], Peru filed an application instituting proceedings against Chile

Chapter I: International Court of Justice 1273


to eradicate illicit coca and poppy plantations, and the harmful effects in Ecuador of such operations.

By an order of 30 May 2008 [YUN 2008, p. 1400], the Court fixed 29 April 2009 and 29 March 2010 as the respective time limits for the filing of a memorial by Ecuador and a counter-memorial by Colombia, which were filed within the time limits.

By an order of 25 June 2010 [YUN 2010, p. 1279], the Court directed the submission of a reply by Ecuador and a rejoinder by Colombia. It fixed 31 January 2011 and 1 December 2011, respectively, as the time limits for the filing of those pleadings. The reply of Ecuador was filed within the time limit.

By an order of 19 October 2011 [YUN 2011, p. 1232], the Court extended from 1 December 2011 to 1 Feb-ruary 2012 the time limit for the filing of a rejoinder by Colombia, which was filed within the time limit. The Court fixed 30 September 2013 as the date for the opening of oral proceedings in the case.

By a letter dated 12 September 2013, Ecuador in-formed the Court that it wished to discontinue the proceedings in the case, referring to article 89 of the Rules of Court and to a 9 September 2013 agree-ment between the parties that “fully and finally” re-solved Ecuador’s claims against Colombia. By a let-ter of the same date, Colombia informed the Court that it made no objection to the discontinuance of the case. The 9 September agreement established an exclusion zone, in which Colombia would not con-duct aerial spraying operations; created a joint com-mission to ensure that spraying operations had not caused herbicides to drift into Ecuador and, so long as they had not, provided a mechanism for the grad-ual reduction of the said zone; set out operational parametres for Colombia’s spraying programme; and established a dispute settlement mechanism.

On 13 September 2013, the President of the Court made an order recording the discontinuance of the case and directing its removal from the Court’s General List.

Whaling in the Antarctic (Australia v. Japan)

On 31 May 2010 [YUN 2010, p. 1284], Australia insti-tuted proceedings against Japan, alleging that Japan’s continued pursuit of a large-scale programme of whal-ing under the Second Phase of its Japanese Whale Re-search Program under Special Permit in the Antarctic (jarpa ii) was in breach of obligations assumed by Ja-pan under the International Convention for the Regu-lation of Whaling, as well as its other international obligations for the preservation of marine mammals and the marine environment.

Australia requested the Court to adjudge and declare that Japan was in breach of its international obligations in implementing jarpa ii in the Southern Ocean, and to order that Japan cease implementation of jarpa ii; revoke any authorizations, permits or li-

Chile requested the Court to dismiss Peru’s claims in their entirety, and adjudge and declare that the respective maritime zone entitlements of Chile and Peru had been fully delimited by agreement; that they were delimited by a boundary following the parallel of latitude passing through the most seaward marker of the land boundary between Chile and Peru, known as Hito No. 1, having a latitude of 18° 21’00’’ S under WGS84 Datum; and that Peru had no entitlement to any maritime zone extending to the south of that parallel.

Aerial Herbicide Spraying (Ecuador v. Colombia)

On 31 March 2008 [YUN 2008, p. 1399], Ecuador filed an application instituting proceedings against Colom-bia in respect of a dispute concerning the alleged aerial spraying by Colombia of toxic herbicides at locations near at, and across its border with Ecuador. Ecuador maintained that the spraying had caused serious dam-age to people, crops, animals and the environment on the Ecuadorian side, and posed a risk of further dam-age. It contended that it had made repeated efforts to negotiate an end to the fumigations, without success.

Ecuador, accordingly, requested the Court to ad-judge and declare that Colombia had violated its obli-gations under international law by causing or allowing the deposit of toxic herbicides on the territory of Ecua-dor that had caused damage to human health, prop-erty and the environment; and that Colombia should indemnify Ecuador for any loss or damage caused by its internationally unlawful acts, and in particular the death or injury to the health of any person or persons arising from the use of such herbicides, any loss of or damage to the property or livelihood or human rights of such persons, environmental damage or the deple-tion of natural resources, the costs of monitoring to identify and assess future risks to public health, human rights and the environment resulting from the use of herbicides, and any other loss or damage. It further requested the Court to adjudge and declare that Co-lombia should respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ecuador; prevent, on any part of its terri-tory, the use of any toxic herbicides in such a way that they could be deposited onto the territory of Ecuador; and prohibit the use, by means of aerial dispersion, of such herbicides in Ecuador, or on or near any part of its border with Ecuador.

As basis for the Court’s jurisdiction, Ecuador in-voked article XXXI of the 1948 Pact of Bogotá, to which both States were parties. Ecuador also relied on article 32 of the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances [YUN 1988, p. 689], to which both countries were parties.

Ecuador reaffirmed its opposition to the export and consumption of illegal narcotics, but stressed that the issues it presented to the Court related exclusively to the methods and locations of Colombia’s operations



Public hearings were held from 26 June to 16 July 2013, at the end of which the parties presented their final submissions to the Court.

Australia requested the Court to adjudge and de-clare that Japan was in breach of its international ob-ligations in authorizing and implementing jarpa ii in the Southern Ocean and that, by its conduct, Japan had violated its obligations pursuant to the Interna-tional Convention for the Regulation of Whaling to observe the zero-catch limit in relation to the killing of whales for commercial purposes; refrain from under-taking commercial whaling of fin whales in the South-ern Ocean Sanctuary; and observe the moratorium on taking, killing or treating of whales, except minke whales, by factory ships or whale catchers attached to factory ships. The Court was also requested to adjudge and declare that jarpa ii was not a programme for purposes of scientific research within the meaning of Article VIII of the Convention, and that Japan must refrain from authorizing or implementing any special permit whaling; cease with immediate effect the im-plementation of jarpa ii; and revoke any authoriza-tion, permit or licence allowing such implementation.

Japan requested the Court to adjudge and declare that the Court lacked jurisdiction over the claims brought against Japan by Australia and that, conse-quently, the application of New Zealand for permission to intervene in the proceedings lapsed; in the alterna-tive, the Court was requested to reject Australia’s claims.

New Zealand presented its oral observations to the Court on 8 July.

Frontier Dispute (Burkina Faso/Niger)

On 20 July 2010 [YUN 2010, p. 1284], Burkina Faso and the Niger jointly submitted a frontier dispute be-tween them to the Court.

By a joint letter dated 12 May, the two States noti-fied to the Court a Special Agreement signed in Nia-mey on 24 February 2009, which entered into force on 20 November 2009. Under the terms of article 1 of the Special Agreement, the parties had agreed to submit their frontier dispute to the Court, and each of them would choose an ad hoc judge. The Court was requested to determine the course of the boundary between the two countries in the sector from the astro-nomic marker of Tong-Tong (latitude 14° 25’ 04” N; longitude 00° 12’ 47” E) to the beginning of the Botou bend (latitude 12° 36’ 18” N; longitude 01° 52’ 07” E).

The Court was further requested to place on rec-ord the parties’ agreement on the results of the work of the Joint Technical Commission on Demarca-tion of the Burkina Faso-Niger boundary. The par-ties requested the Court to authorize the following proceedings: a memorial filed by each party not later than nine months after the seizing of the Court; a

cences allowing the activities which were the subject of the application to be undertaken; and provide assur-ances and guarantees that it would not take any further action under jarpa ii or any similar programme until such a programme had been brought into conformity with its obligations under international law.

As the basis for the Court’s jurisdiction, Australia referred to the declarations recognizing the Court’s jurisdiction as compulsory made by Australia on 22 March 2002 and by Japan on 9 July 2007.

By an order of 13 July 2010 [ibid.], the Court fixed 9 May 2011 as the time limit for the filing of a memo-rial by Australia and 9 March 2012 as the time limit for the filing of a counter-memorial by Japan, which were filed within the time limits. The Court subse-quently decided that the filing of a reply by Australia and a rejoinder by Japan was not necessary.

On 20 November 2012 [YUN 2012, p. 1262], New Zealand filed a declaration of intervention in the case under Article 63 of the Court’s Statute. New Zea-land contended that, as a party to the International Convention for the Registration of Whaling, it had a direct interest “in the construction that might be placed upon the Convention by the Court in its de-cision in these proceedings”, in particular in respect of article VIII of the Convention, which provided contracting Governments with the authority to grant any of its nationals a special permit to kill, take and treat whales for purposes of scientific research subject to such restrictions as the contracting Government thought fit. At the end of its declaration, New Zea-land provided a summary of its interpretation of arti-cle VIII and underlined that it did not seek to become a party to the proceedings.

In accordance with article 83 of the Rules of Court, Australia and Japan were invited to furnish observa-tions on New Zealand’s declaration by 21 December 2012, which were filed within the time limit.

By an order of 6 February 2013, the Court, tak-ing note of Japan’s concerns about the equality of the parties, recalled that intervention under Article 63 of the Statute was limited to submitting observations on the construction of the convention in question and did not allow entities that were not party to the proceedings to deal with any other aspect of the case before the Court. The Court considered that such an intervention could not affect the equality of the par-ties, and concluded that New Zealand’s declaration of intervention was admissible.

By the same order, the Court fixed 4 April 2013 as the time limit for the filing by New Zealand of the observations referred to in article 86, paragraph 1, of the Rules of Court; authorized the filing by Australia and Japan of their observations on New Zealand’s ob-servations; and fixed 31 May 2013 as the time limit for such filings, which were filed within the time limits.



of the River Sirba upstream until its intersection with the IGN line, at the point with geographic coordinates 13° 20’ 01.8” N; 01° 07’ 29.3” E; from that point, the frontier followed the IGN line, turning up towards the north-west, until the point with geographic coordinates 13° 22’ 28.9” N; 00° 59’ 34.8” E, where the IGN line turns south; at that point, the frontier continued due west in a straight line until the point with geographic coordinates 13° 22’ 28.9” N; 00° 59’ 30.9” E, where it reached the meridian passing through the inter-section of the Say parallel with the right bank of the River Sirba; the frontier then followed that meridian southwards until the point with geographic coordinates 13° 06’ 12.08” N; 00° 59’ 30.9” E, and continued in a straight line from that point to the point situated at the beginning of the Botou bend, with geographic coordi-nates 12° 36’ 19.2” N; 01° 52’ 06.9” E.

The Court further decided to nominate three ex-perts to assist the parties in the demarcation of their common frontier in the disputed area, in accordance with article 7 of the Special Agreement of 2009.

Appended to the judgment was a declaration by one judge; and separate opinions by two judges and two ad hoc judges.

By an order of 12 July, the Court nominated the three experts referred to in its judgment, thus complet-ing the case.

Certain Activities carried out by Nicaragua in the Border Area (Costa Rica v. Nicaragua)

On 18 November 2010 [YUN 2010, p. 1285], Costa Rica instituted proceedings against Nicaragua in re-spect of an alleged incursion into, occupation of and use by Nicaragua’s army of Costa Rican territory, as well as alleged breaches of Nicaragua’s obligations towards Costa Rica under a number of international treaties and conventions. Costa Rica charged Nicara-gua with having occupied, in two separate incidents, the territory of Costa Rica in connection with the con-struction of a canal across Costa Rican territory from the San Juan River to Laguna los Portillos (also known as Harbor Head Lagoon), and with having carried out related works of dredging on the San Juan River. Costa Rica stated that the ongoing and planned dredging and the construction of the canal would seriously af-fect the flow of water to the Colorado River of Costa Rica, and would cause further damage to Costa Rican territory, including the wetlands and national wildlife protected areas in the region.

By two separate orders of 17 April 2013, the Court joined the proceedings in the cases concerning Certain Activities carried out by Nicaragua in the Border Area (Costa Rica v. Nicaragua) (“the Costa Rica v. Nicaragua case”) and the Construction of a Road in Costa Rica along the San Juan River (Nicaragua v. Costa Rica) (“the Nicaragua v. Costa Rica case”) (see below), in conform-

counter-memorial filed by each party not later than nine months after exchange of the memorials; and any other pleading whose filing, at the request of either of the parties, should be authorized or directed by the Court. Under article 7 of the Special Agreement, the parties accepted the judgment of the Court as final and binding. From the day on which the judgment was rendered, the parties would have 18 months in which to commence the work of demarcating the boundary. In case of difficulty in implementing the judgment, either party could seize the Court pursuant to Article 60 of its Statute. The parties requested the Court to nominate, in its judgment, three experts to assist them in the demarcation.

Pending the judgment of the Court, the parties un-dertook to maintain peace, security and tranquillity among the populations of the two States in the frontier region, refraining from any act of incursion into the disputed areas, and organizing regular meetings of ad-ministrative officials and security services. With regard to the creation of socioeconomic infrastructure, the parties undertook to hold preliminary consultations prior to implementation.

By an order of 14 September 2010 [YUN 2010, p. 1285], the Court fixed 20 April 2011 and 20 January 2012 as the respective time limits for the filing of a memorial and a counter-memorial by each of the par-ties, which were filed within the time limits.

Public hearings were held from 8 to 17 October 2012 [YUN 2012, p. 1262], at the end of which the parties presented their final submissions to the Court.

In its judgment delivered on 16 April 2013, the Court noted the parties’ agreement that their com-mon frontier connected the two points at which the Tong-Tong and Tao astronomic markers were situ-ated, as well as their agreement on the location of the Tong-Tong astronomic marker; as the parties did not disagree on the identification or the location of the Tao astronomic marker, it would be for them to determine its precise coordinates together during the demarca-tion operations.

The Court, unanimously, found that it could not uphold the requests made in points 1 and 3 of Bur-kina Faso’s final submissions and decided that, from the Tong-Tong astronomic marker, situated at the point with geographic coordinates 14° 24’ 53.2” N; 00° 12’ 51.7” E, to the Tao astronomic marker, the pre-cise coordinates of which remained to be determined by the parties, the frontier took the form of a straight line; from the Tao astronomic marker, the frontier followed the line that appeared on the 1:200,000-scale map of the Institut géographique national (IGN) de France, 1960 edition (the “IGN line”) until its intersection with the median line of the River Sirba at the point with geo-graphic coordinates 13° 21’ 15.9” N; 01° 17’ 07.2” E; from that point, the frontier followed the median line



pended to the order were dissenting opinions of one judge and one ad hoc judge.

On 24 September, Costa Rica filed a request for the indication of new provisional measures. After holding public hearings on that request from 14 to 17 Octo-ber, the Court, in its order of 22 November, unani-mously reaffirmed the provisional measures indicated in its 8 March 2011 order and decided that Nicaragua should refrain from any dredging and other activities in the disputed territory, in particular from work on the two new caños (canals); that it should fill, within two weeks, the trench on the beach north of the east-ern caño; and that it should immediately inform the Court of the completion of this work and submit a detailed report, including photographic evidence, within one week from the completion. The Court further found, unanimously, that Nicaragua should remove any civilian, police or security personnel or private persons under its jurisdiction or control from the disputed territory, and prevent any such personnel or persons from entering it. It held by 15 votes to 1 that, following consultation with the secretariat of the Ramsar Convention and after giving Nicaragua prior notice, Costa Rica might take appropriate measures related to the two new caños, to the extent necessary to prevent irreparable prejudice to the environment of the disputed territory and that, in taking these measures, Costa Rica should avoid any adverse effects on the San Juan River. The Court also unanimously decided that the parties should inform it at three-month intervals about their compliance with the provisional measures.

Construction of a Road in Costa Rica along the San Juan River (Nicaragua v. Costa Rica)

On 22 December 2011 [YUN 2011, p. 1239], Nica-ragua instituted proceedings against Costa Rica with regard to violations of Nicaraguan sovereignty and major environmental damages to its territory. Nicara-gua contended that Costa Rica was carrying out ma-jor construction works along most of the border area between the two countries with grave environmental consequences.

In its application, Nicaragua claimed that Costa Rica’s unilateral actions threatened to destroy the San Juan de Nicaragua River and its fragile ecosystem, including the adjacent biosphere reserves and inter-nationally protected wetlands that depended upon the clean and uninterrupted flow of the river for their survival. According to Nicaragua, the most immediate threat to the river and its environment was posed by Costa Rica’s construction of a road running parallel and in close proximity to the southern bank of the river, and extending for at least 120 kilometres, from Los Chiles in the west to Delta in the east. It was also stated that those works had caused and would continue to cause significant economic damage to Nicaragua.

ity with the principle of the sound administration of justice and the need for judicial economy.

By an order of 18 April, the Court found unani-mously that Nicaragua’s first counterclaim had become without object after the proceedings of the two cases had been joined, and that it would be examined as a principal claim in the context of the joined proceed-ings; that Nicaragua’s second and third counterclaims were inadmissible under the current proceedings; and that there was no need to examine the fourth counter-claim as any question relating to the implementation of provisional measures could be taken up by the par-ties in the further course of the proceedings.

On 23 May, Costa Rica requested the modifica-tion of the Court’s order of 8 March 2011 [YUN 2011, p. 1237], referring to Article 41 of the Statute of the Court and article 76 of the Rules of Court. Costa Rica complained of Nicaragua’s sending to and main-taining in the disputed area large numbers of persons undertaking activities that affected that territory and its ecology. In Costa Rica’s view, those actions, which had occurred since the Court had decided to indicate provisional measures, created a new situation necessi-tating further provisional measures in order to prevent the presence of any individual in the disputed territory other than civilian personnel sent by Costa Rica to protect the environment.

In its observations filed within the time limit fixed as 14 June, Nicaragua asked the Court to reject Costa Rica’s request and to modify its 8 March 2011 order on the basis of article 76 of the Rules of Court, in or-der to allow both parties to dispatch civilian personnel charged with the protection of the environment to the disputed territory. According to Nicaragua, this modi-fication was necessitated by the change in the factual and legal situations as a result of both the construction by Costa Rica of a 160-kilometre-long road along the right bank of the San Juan River and the joinder of the proceedings in the Costa Rica v. Nicaragua and Nicara-gua v. Costa Rica cases. In its observations filed within the time limit fixed as 20 June, Costa Rica asked the Court to reject Nicaragua’s request, asserting that no part of the road in question was in the disputed area and that the joinder of the proceedings did not give rise to one proceeding which should be the subject of joint orders.

In its order of 16 July, the Court, by 15 votes to 2, found that the circumstances did not require the mod-ification of its March 2011 order; unanimously reaf-firmed the provisional measures indicated in that or-der, in particular the requirement to refrain from any action that might aggravate or extend the dispute or make it more difficult to resolve; reminded the parties that those measures had binding effect and therefore created international legal obligations; and underlined that the order of 16 July was without prejudice to the parties’ compliance with the March 2011 order. Ap-



Cambodia rejected Thailand’s submissions and asked the Court, under Article 60 of its Statute, to respond to Cambodia’s request for the interpretation of the Court’s 1962 judgment, emphasizing that the Temple of Preah Vihear was situated in territory under the sovereignty of Cambodia (first paragraph of the judgment’s operative clause) as the legal consequence of the Temple’s being situated on the Cambodian side of the frontier; and that Thailand had therefore an ob-ligation to withdraw any military or police forces, or other guards or keepers, stationed at the Temple or in its vicinity on Cambodian territory (second paragraph of the operative clause) as a particular consequence of the general and continuing obligation to respect the integrity of Cambodia’s territory, which was delimited in the region of the Temple and its vicinity by the line on the annex I map, on which the judgment of the Court was based.

Thailand requested the Court to adjudge and de-clare that Cambodia’s request for the interpretation of the 1962 judgment did not satisfy the conditions laid down in Article 60 of the Court’s Statute and that consequently the Court had no jurisdiction to respond to that request, which was inadmissible; and that, in the alternative, there were no grounds to grant Cambodia’s request and no reason to interpret the judgment. The Court was also asked to declare that its 1962 judgment did not determine with binding force the boundary line between Thailand and Cambodia or fix the limit of the Temple’s vicinity.

In its judgment delivered on 11 November, the Court, unanimously, found that it had jurisdiction under Article 60 of its Statute to entertain Cambo-dia’s request which it found admissible, and declared, by way of interpretation of the 1962 judgment, that Cambodia had sovereignty over the whole territory of the promontory of Preah Vihear and that, in conse-quence, Thailand was under an obligation to withdraw from that territory its military or police forces, or other guards or keepers, that were stationed there.

Appended to the judgment was a joint declaration by three judges; a separate opinion by one judge; and declarations by two ad hoc judges.

Obligation to Negotiate Access to the Pacific Ocean (Bolivia v. Chile)

On 24 April, Bolivia instituted proceedings against Chile concerning a dispute in relation to Chile’s obli-gation to negotiate in good faith and effectively with Bolivia in order to reach an agreement granting Bolivia a fully sovereign access to the Pacific Ocean.

In its application, Bolivia stated that the subject of the dispute was the existence of that obligation, Chile’s non-compliance with it and Chile’s duty to comply with it. Bolivia asserted that, beyond its general obli-gations under international law, Chile had committed

By an order of 23 January 2012 [YUN 2012, p. 1265], the Court fixed 19 December 2012 and 19 Decem-ber 2013 as the respective time limits for the filing of a memorial by Nicaragua and a counter-memorial by Costa Rica. The memorial of Nicaragua was filed within the time limit.

By two separate orders of 17 April 2013, the Court joined the proceedings in the Costa Rica v. Nicaragua and Nicaragua v. Costa Rica cases (see above). In the context of those joined proceedings, the Court, by its orders dated 18 April and 16 July, ruled, respectively, on the counterclaims submitted by Nicaragua in its counter-memorial filed in the Costa Rica v. Nicaragua case and on the requests made by Costa Rica and Nic-aragua for the modification of the provisional meas-ures indicated in the Court’s order of 8 March 2011 [YUN 2011, p. 1237] in the Costa Rica v. Nicaragua case.

On 11 October, Nicaragua filed a request for the indication of provisional measures. After holding public hearings on that request from 5 to 8 Novem-ber, the Court, in its order of 13 December, unani-mously found that the circumstances did not require the indication of provisional measures.

Request for Interpretation of the Judgment of 15 June 1962 in the Case concerning the Temple of Preah Vihear (Cambodia v. Thailand)

On 28 April 2011 [YUN 2011, p. 1238], Cambodia submitted a request for interpretation of the judg-ment rendered by the Court on 15 June 1962 in the case concerning the Temple of Preah Vihear (Cambo-dia v. Thailand) [YUN 1962, p. 467].

In its application, Cambodia indicated the points in dispute as to the meaning or scope of the judg-ment, as stipulated by article 98 of the Rules of Court. It stated that according to Cambodia, the Court’s 1962 judgment was based on the prior exist-ence of an international boundary established and recognized by both States; according to Cambo-dia, that boundary was defined by the map which enabled the Court to find that Cambodia’s sover-eignty over the Temple was a direct and automatic consequence of its sovereignty over the territory on which the Temple was situated. According to Cam-bodia, Thailand was under an obligation, pursuant to the judgment, to withdraw any military or other personnel from the vicinity of the Temple on Cam-bodian territory. That was a general and continuing obligation deriving from the statements concerning Cambodia’s territorial sovereignty recognized by the Court. Cambodia asserted that Thailand disagreed with all of those points.

Public hearings on the merits of the case were held from 15 to 19 April 2013, following which the parties presented their final submissions to the Court.



which the breadth of Nicaragua’s territorial sea was measured, but that the Court was not in a position at the time to delimit the continental shelf through-out the area of the overlap between Nicaragua’s con-tinental shelf entitlement and that of Colombia, as requested by Nicaragua, considering that Nicaragua had not then established that it had a continental margin extending beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which its territorial sea was meas-ured. Nicaragua contended that its submission to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf on 24 June 2013 demonstrated that its continental margin extended more than 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which the breadth of its territorial sea was measured, both traversing an area beyond 200 nautical miles from Colombia and partly over-lapping with an area within 200 nautical miles of Colombia’s coast. Nicaragua also observed that the two States had not agreed upon a maritime boundary between them in the area beyond 200 nautical miles from Nicaragua’s coast and that Colombia objected to continental shelf claims in that area.

As the basis for the Court’s jurisdiction, Nicaragua invoked article XXXI of the Pact of Bogotá, noting that it was constrained into taking action rather sooner than later because Colombia had denounced the Pact of Bogotá on 27 November 2012, with effect from 27 November 2013 in accordance with article LVI of the Pact, which would accordingly remain in force for Colombia until that date. Nicaragua also contended that the subject matter of its application remained within the Court’s jurisdiction established in the case concerning the Territorial and Maritime Dispute (Nicaragua v. Colombia), instituted in 2001 [YUN 2001, p. 1195], as in its 2012 judgment the Court did not de-finitively determine the delimitation of the continental shelf between Nicaragua and Colombia in the area be-yond 200 nautical miles from the Nicaraguan coast.

By its order of 9 December 2013, the Court fixed 9 December 2014 and 9 December 2015 as the re-spective time limits for the filing of a memorial by Nicaragua and a counter-memorial by Colombia.

Alleged Violations of Sovereign Rights and Maritime Spaces in the Caribbean Sea (Nicaragua v. Colombia)

On 26 November, Nicaragua instituted proceed-ings against Colombia relating to violations of Nica-ragua’s sovereign rights and maritime zones as de-clared by the Court’s judgment of 19 November 2012 [YUN 2012, p. 1257] in the case concerning the Territo-rial and Maritime Dispute (Nicaragua v. Colombia), and the threat of the use of force by Colombia in order to implement those violations.

In its application, Nicaragua requested the Court to adjudge and declare that Colombia had breached

itself through agreements, diplomatic practice and a series of declarations attributable to its highest-level representatives to negotiate a sovereign access to the sea for Bolivia, but had not complied with that obli-gation and, denied its existence. Bolivia had, accord-ingly, requested the Court to adjudge and declare that Chile had the obligation to negotiate with Bolivia in order to reach an agreement granting Bolivia a fully sovereign access to the Pacific Ocean; that Chile had breached that obligation; and that Chile must perform the said obligation in good faith, promptly, formally, within a reasonable time and effectively. Bolivia also reserved the right to request that an arbitral tribunal be established in accordance with the obligation un-der article XII of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship concluded with Chile on 20 October 1904 and the Protocol of 16 April 1907, in the case of any claims arising out of that Treaty.

As the basis for the Court’s jurisdiction, Bolivia in-voked article XXXI of the American Treaty on Pacific Settlement of 1948 (Pact of Bogotá), to which both States were parties.

By its order of 18 June, the Court fixed 17 April 2014 and 18 February 2015 as the respective time limits for the filing of a memorial by Bolivia and a counter-memorial by Chile.

Question of the Delimitation of the Continental Shelf between Nicaragua and Colombia beyond 200 nautical miles from the Nicaraguan Coast (Nicaragua v. Colombia)

On 16 September, Nicaragua instituted proceed-ings against Colombia with regard to the delimita-tion of the continental shelf between Nicaragua and Colombia beyond 200 nautical miles from the Nica-raguan coast.

In its application, Nicaragua requested the Court to adjudge and declare the precise course of the mari-time boundary between the two countries in the areas of the continental shelf which appertained to each of them beyond the boundaries determined by the Court in its judgment of 19 November 2012 [YUN 2012, p. 1257] in the case concerning the Territo-rial and Maritime Dispute (Nicaragua v. Colombia). The Court was further requested to state the princi-ples and rules of international law that determined the rights and duties of the two States in relation to the area of overlapping continental shelf claims and the use of its resources, pending the delimitation of the maritime boundary between them beyond 200 nautical miles from Nicaragua’s coast.

Nicaragua recalled that the Court’s 2012 judg-ment defined the single maritime boundary between the continental shelf and the exclusive economic zones of Nicaragua and of Colombia within the 200-nautical-mile limit from the baselines from



Questions relating to the Seizure and Detention of Certain Documents and Data (Timor-Leste v. Australia)

On 17 December, Timor-Leste filed an application instituting proceedings with regard to the seizure and subsequent detention by Australia of documents, data and other property which belonged to Timor-Leste, and which Timor-Leste had the right to protect under international law.

Timor-Leste contended that, on 3 December, offic-ers of the Australian Security Intelligence Organization, allegedly acting under a warrant issued by Australia’s Attorney-General, seized from the business premises of a legal adviser to Timor-Leste in Canberra documents and data containing correspondence between the Gov-ernment of Timor-Leste and its legal advisers, notably relating to a pending arbitration under the 2002 Timor Sea Treaty between Timor-Leste and Australia.

Timor-Leste, accordingly, requested the Court to adjudge and declare that the seizure and continuing de-tention by Australia of the documents and data violated Timor-Leste’s sovereignty, as well as its property and other rights under international law and any relevant domestic law; and that Australia must immediately re-turn to Timor-Leste those documents and data, destroy beyond recovery every copy of such documents and data that was in Australia’s possession or control, and ensure the destruction of every copy that Australia had directly or indirectly passed to a third person or third State. The Court was also requested to adjudge and de-clare that Australia should afford satisfaction to Timor-Leste in respect of those violations of its rights under international law and any relevant domestic law in the form of a formal apology, as well as the costs incurred by Timor-Leste in preparing and presenting the current application. As basis for the Court’s jurisdiction, Timor-Leste invoked the declarations of the two countries recognizing the compulsory jurisdiction of the Court.

Also on 17 December, Timor-Leste filed a request for the indication of provisional measures, stating that the purpose of the request was to protect its rights and to prevent the use of seized documents and data by Australia against Timor-Leste’s interests and rights in the pending arbitration and with regard to other matters concerning the Timor Sea and its resources.

Timor-Leste, accordingly, requested the Court to indicate as provisional measures that the documents and data seized by Australia on 3 December be imme-diately sealed and delivered into the Court’s custody, and that Australia immediately deliver to Timor-Leste and to the Court a list of all documents and data or the information that it had disclosed or transmitted to any person, as well as a list of the identities and current positions held by such persons; deliver within five days to Timor-Leste and to the Court a list of all copies that it had made of the seized documents and data; destroy

its obligations not to use or threaten to use force un-der the UN Charter and international customary law, not to violate Nicaragua’s maritime zones as delimited in the Court’s 2012 judgment as well as Nicaragua’s sovereign rights and jurisdiction in those zones, and not to violate Nicaragua’s rights under customary international law as reflected in parts V and VI of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The Court was also requested to adjudge and declare that, consequently, Colombia was bound to comply with the 2012 judgment, to wipe out the le-gal and material consequences of its internationally wrongful acts, and to make full reparation for the harm caused by those acts. In support of its claim, Nicaragua cited declarations reportedly made be-tween 19 November 2012 and 18 September 2013 by the President, the Vice-President and the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Colombia, as well as by the Com-mander of the Colombian Navy, claiming that those declarations represented a “rejection” by Colombia of the Court’s judgment and a decision to consider it “not applicable”.

Nicaragua also referred to Colombia’s Presidential Decree 1946 establishing an “Integral Contiguous Zone” which, according to Nicaragua quoting the President of Colombia, covered maritime spaces ex-tending from the south, where the Albuquerque and East Southeast keys were situated, and to the north, where Serranilla Key was located, and included the San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina, Quitas-ueño, Serrana and Roncador islands, as well as the other formations in the area. Nicaragua stated that the decree violated Nicaragua’s sovereign rights over its maritime areas in the Caribbean, quoting the Pres-ident of Colombia’s declaration that Colombia would exercise jurisdiction and control in the Integral Con-tiguous Zone over all areas related to security and the struggle against delinquency, and over fiscal, customs, environmental, immigration and health matters and other areas. According to Nicaragua, the threatening declarations by Colombian authorities and the hostile treatment of Nicaraguan vessels by Colombian naval forces had seriously affected Nicaragua’s possibilities for exploiting the living and non-living resources in its Caribbean exclusive economic zone and continental shelf, while attempts at dialogue to discuss the imple-mentation of the Court’s 2012 judgment were rejected by Colombia.

As the basis for the Court’s jurisdiction, Nicaragua invoked article XXXI of the Pact of Bogotá, pointing out that Colombia had denounced the Pact on 27 No-vember 2012, with effect from 27 November 2013 in accordance with article LVI of the Pact, which would accordingly remain in force for Colombia until that date. Nicaragua further argued that the Court’s juris-diction rested in its inherent power to pronounce on the actions required by its judgments.



Other questions

Trust Fund to Assist States in the Settlement of Disputes

In August [A/68/349], the Secretary-General reported on the activities and status of the Trust Fund to Assist States in the Settlement of Disputes through the International Court of Justice since the submission of his 2012 report [YUN 2012, p. 1268]. The Fund, established in 1989 [YUN 1989, p. 818], provided financial assistance to States for expenses incurred in connection with a dispute submitted to the Court by way of a special agreement or by the application of its Statute, or the execution of a judg-ment of the Court.

During the period under review (1 July 2012 to 30 June 2013), the Fund did not receive any applica-tions for financial assistance from States. Three States contributed to the Fund, which as at 30 June had a balance of some $3.1 million. Noting that the num-ber of contributions remained low, the Secretary-General urged States and other entities to consider making contributions to the Fund, substantially and on a regular basis.

all copies of the seized documents and data, secure the destruction of all copies that it had transmitted to any third party, and inform Timor-Leste and the Court of the steps taken in pursuance of that order for de-struction; and give an assurance as to not intercept or cause or request the interception of communications between Timor-Leste and its legal advisers, whether within or outside Australia or Timor-Leste.

Timor-Leste further requested that, pending the Court’s decision on its request for the indication of provisional measures, the President of the Court ex-ercise his power under article 74 of the Rules of Court to call upon Australia to act in such a way as would enable any order the Court might make on the said request to have its appropriate effects.

In his 18 December communication to the Prime Minister of Australia, the icj President drew the atten-tion of the Australian Government to the need to act in such a way as to enable any order the Court would make on the request for provisional measures to have its appropriate effects, in particular to refrain from any act which might cause prejudice to the rights claimed by Timor-Leste in the current proceedings. By the same communication, the President of the Court fixed 20–22 January 2014 as the dates for public hearings on the request for the indication of provisional measures.