Legality of Use of Force (Serbia and Montenegro v. Belgium) - Fixing of the time-limits within which Yugoslavia may present written statements on the preliminary objections made by the Respondent Stat

INTERNATIONAL COURTOFruSTICE

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Conununiqué
unofficial
forimmediate release

No. 2000/29
14 September 2000

Legality of Use of Force
(Yugoslavia v. Belgium) (Yugoslavia v. Canada) (Yngoslavia v. France)

CYugoslavia v. Germany) <Yugoslavia v. ltaly) <Yugoslavia v. Netherlands)
<Yugoslavia v. Portugal) (Yugoslavia v. United Kingdom)

Fixing of the time-limits witbin whicb Yugoslavia may present written statements

on the prelim.inary objections made by the Respondent States

THE HAGUE, 14 September 2000. The Vice-President of the International Cow1 of Justice
(ICJ), Judge Shi Jiuyong, Acting President in the cases concerning Legalitv of Use of Force
(Yugoslavia v. Belgium) (Yugoslavia v. Canada) (Yugoslavia v. France) (Yugoslavia v. Germany)

(Yugoslavia v. Italy) (Yugoslavia v. Netherlands) (Yugoslavia v. Portugal) (Yugoslavia. United
Kîngdom), has fixed the time-limits within which Yugoslavia may present written statements on
the preliminary objections raised by the Respondent States in the said cases.

By Orders of 8 September 2000, the Vice-President, taking account of the views of the

Parties and the special circumstances of the cases, flXed5 Apri12001 as the time-limit for the filing
of those written statements.

The subsequent procedure was reserved for further decision in each case.

The Respondent States bad raised certain preliminary objections on 5 July 2000, stating that
the Cow1bad no jurisdiction to examine the merits of the cases and that Yugoslavia's claims were
inadmissible.

At a meeting held on 6 September 2000 between the Vice-President and the Parties,
Yugoslavia had indicated that itwould require nine months for the preparation of written
statements of its observations and submissions on those preliminary objections. The Respondent
States had not objected to such a time-limit being fixed, but stressed that they expected that
Yugoslavia would provide specifie answers to the preliminary objections raised by them.

Vice-President Shi Jiuyong exercises the functions of the presidency in the eight cases,
President Gilbert Guillaume being a national of one of the Parties and having decided not to
exercise the functionsf the presidency in any of those cases.

History of the oroceedings

On 29 April 1999 the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia înstituted proceedings before the
Court against Belgium, Canada, France, Gennany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, the
United Kingdom and the United States of America, accusing those States of bombing Yugoslav

territory in violation of their international obligations.

In its Applications, Yugoslavia pointed out that the above-mentionedtates had committed
"acts ... by which [they] have violated [their] international obligation[s] banning the use of force -2-

against another State, not to intervene in the internai affai[thatState]" and "not to violate [its]
sovereignty"; "the obligation to protect the civilian population and civilian abjects in wartime [and]
to protectthe environment"; "the obligation relating to free navigation on international rivers"; "the
obligation regarding fund.amental human rights and freedoms"; and "the obligation[s] not to use
prohibited weapons [and] not to delîberately înflict conditions of lfe calculated to cause the
physical destructionof a national group". Yugoslavia requested the Court to adjudge and declare

inter alîa that the States referred to above were "responsible for the violation of the above[­
mentioned] international obligations" andthat they were "obliged to provide compensation for the
damage clone".

On the same day Yugoslavia also filed, in each of the ten cases, a request for interim
measures of protection (provisional measures), asking the Court to arder the·States involved to

"cease irnmedîately [their] acts of use of force" and to "refrain from any act ofthreat or use of force
against the Federal RepublicofYugoslavia". Hearings on provisional measures were held on 10 to
12 May 1999 and the Court handed dawn its decision in each of the cases on 2 June 1999. In two
cases (Yugoslavia v. Spain and Yugoslavia v. United States of America), the Court concluded that
it manifesty lacked jurisdiction and it accordingly ordered that the cases be removed from its List.

ln the other eight (Yugoslavia v. Belgium; Yugoslavia v. Canada; Yugoslavia v. France;
Yugoslavia v. Germany; Yugoslavia v. ltaly; Yugoslavia v. Netherlands; Yugoslavia v. Portugal;
Yugoslavia v. United Kingdom), the Court found that it lacked prima facie jurisdiction- which is
one of the prerequisites for the indication of provisional measuresand that it therefore could not
îndicate such measures; the Court, however, stated that it remaîned seised of those cases and

stressed that its :findings,at that stage,no way prejudge[d] the question of the jurisdiction of the
Court to deal wîth the merits" of the cases and left "unaffected the right of the Governments of
Yugoslavia and [of the respondent States] to submit arguments in respect of those questions".

By Orders of 30 June 1999, the Court decided that Yugoslavia should submit a Memorial in
each of the eight cases by not later than 5 January 2000 and that the Respondent States (Belgium,

Canada, France, Germany, ltaly, Netherlands, Portugal and United Kîngdom) should each submit a
Counter-Memorial by not later than5 July 2000.

Within the time-limits thus fixed, Yugoslavia filed its Memorials and the eight Respondent
States then raised preliminary objections tojurisdiction and admissibility.

The full text of the eight Orders will shortly be avitilable on the Court's website at the
following address: http://www.icj-cij.org •

Information Department:
Mr. Arthur Witteveen, First Secretary (+ 31 70 302 23 36)
Mrs. Laurence Blairon, Information Officer(+ 31 70 302 23 37)
E-mail address: [email protected]