Legality of the Use by a State of Nuclear Weapons in Armed Conflict (Request for Advisory Opinion by the World Health Organization) - Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons (Request for Advi

INTERNATIONAL COURTOF JUSTICE
PeacePaiace,2517 KJ TheHague.TeL(070-302 23 23)Cable.s:Intercout, heHague.

Telefgx(070-364 99 28).Telex32323.

- ---e-.-c- _-..---rPuuc Communiqué
1- --, unofficial
for -diate rolaaae
,Ad- No. 95/37
20 November 1995

oftheUse bv a Staton bv the WorldHealthOr~m . .

The public hearingsconceming the requestfor an advisory opinion submittedby the World Health
Organizationon est submittedbyede ofNations G-eneralAduestion ons in of the
se of Nuc~LN w, which openedon Monday 30 October 1995,were
on Wednesday 15November.

During the hearings statemeritswere made:
- onbehalfofthe World HealthOrganization,byMr. Claude-Henri Vignes,LegalCounsel(onthe request
submittedby WHO only);

- HonourableGareth Evans, Q.C.,Senator, Minister for ForeignAffairs;eral of Australia,and by the

- on behalf of Egy t, by Mr. Georges Abi-Saab, Professor of lnternational Law, Graduate lnstitute of
InternationalJles, Geneva, Mernberof the lnstitute of International Law;
- on behalfof France,by Mr. MarcPerrinde Bricharnbaut,Directorof LegalAffairs, Minist
Affairs, andby Mr. Alain Pellet, Professorof International Laof Paris X an lnstitute of
Political Studies, Paris;

- Foreign Affairs;many, by Mr. Hartmut Hillgenberg, Director-General ofLegal Affairs, Ministry of

- on behalf of IndonesiaH.E. Mr. Johannes BerchrnansSoedarrnanto Kadarisman, Ambassador of
Indonesiato the Netherlands;

- on behalfofMexico, byH.E.Amhassador SergioGonzalezGalvez, Undersecretaryof ForeignRelations;
- on behalf of Iran, by H.E. Mr.MoharnrnadJ. Zarif, Deputy Minister,Legal andlnternational Affairs,
Ministry of Foreign Affairs;

- University of Rome "Tor Vergata",Head of the Diplornatic LegalService at the Ministryof Foreignhe
Affairs and Agent of theltalian Government before thelnternational Courts;

- on behalf of Japan, byMr. Takek.azuKawamura, Arnbassador,Director-General forArms Control and
Mr. Iccho Itoh, Mayor of Nagasaki;eign Affairs,by Mr. Takashi Hiraoka, Mayor of Hiroshima,and by

- on behalf of Malaysia, Dato' Mohtar Abd, ttorney-General,and by ArnbassadorTan SriRazali
Ismail, Permanent Representative:of Malaysia to the UnitedNations in New York;
- on behalfof New Zealand, the HonourablePaul East, Q.C., Attorney-Generalof New Zealand,and by
Mr. Allan Bracegirdle, DeputyDirectorof the Legal Divisionof the New ZealandMinistry ofForeign
Affairs and Trade;- on behalfof the Philippines,by ProfessorMerlin M. Magallona, Dean,College of Law, Universityof
the Philippines, Agent, andby H.E. Mr.Rodolfo S. Sanchez,Ambassador of the Philippines to the
Netherlands;
- on behalf of Qatar, by H.E. Mr.Najeeb ibn Mohammed Al-Nauimi,Ministerof Justice;

- on behalfof the Russian Federation,by Mr.A. G. Khodakov, Director, Legal Department M, inistryof
Foreign Affairs;

- on behalfof San Marino,by Mrs. Federica Bigi,Official in chargeof PoliticalDirectorate,Department
of Foreign Affairs;
- on behalf of Samoa, by H.E. Mr. NeroniSlade, Ambassadorand Permanent Representative of Samoa
to the United Nations, New York, by Mr. Roger Clark, Distinguished Professorof Law, Rutgers
University Schoolof Law,Camden,NewJersey,andbyMrs. Laurence Boisson deChazoumes,Assistant
Professor, Graduate Institute of InternationalStudies,Geneva;

- on behalfof the Marshall Islands,by the HonourableTheodoreG. Kronmiller,LegalCounsel,Embassy
of the Marshall Islands to the UnitedStates, and by Mrs. Lijon Eknilang,Council Member,Rongelap
Atoll LocalGovemment;
- on behalf of Solomon Islands, by the Honourable Victor Ngele, Minister for Policeand National
Security,by Mr. Jean Salmon,Professorof Law,Universitelibrede Bruxelles,by Mr. James Crawford,
Whewell .,of.ssorof InternationalLaw, UniversityofCambridge, byMr. Eric David, ProfessorofLaw,
Universite libre de Br-, and by Mr. PhilippeSands, Lecturer in Law, Schoolof Oriental and
AfricanStudies,LondonUniversity,and Legal Director, Foundation foIrnternationalEnvironmentalLaw
and Development;
- on behalf of Costa Rica, by Mr. Carlos Vargas-Pizarro, LegalCounsel and Special Envoyof the
Govemment of Costa Rica;

- on behalf of the United Kingdomof Great Britain and Northem Ireland, by the Right HonourableSir
Nicholas Lyell, Q.C., M.P., Her Majesty'sAttorney-General;

- on behalf of the United States of America,by Mr. Conrad K. Harper, Agent and Le al Adviser, US
State, and by Mr. John H. McNeill, Senior Deputy GeneralCounsel, USgaDepartmentof Defense;tof

- on behalfof Zimbabwe,byMr. JonathanWutawunashe,Chargé d'Affairea s.i., Embassyof the Republic
of Zimbabwe, Bmssels.

Questions were put:
- with regard to the request rnadvisoryopinionbyWHOonly,byJudge Kororna,totherepresentative
of WHO;

- with regardto both requests:
*
by Vice-President Schwebel,to France, Mexico,Iran and SolomonIslands;
* by Judges Shi and Vereshchetin,to al1delegations.

Inthis regardthe President pointed out that reps ereto be given in writing, within15days,and
that the Court consideredthat, even if questions were put to a particular State or to WHO they were
deemed by the Court and by those asking them as beingaddressedas well to any other State taking part
in the oral proceedings.

The Courtwill now be into consider its advisory opinions. The dateof the publicSittingat which
the advisory opinionsare to\e read will be announced in a Press Communiqué.