Application instituting proceedings

Document Number
011-19501028-APP-1-00-EN
Document Type
Date of the Document
Document File
Bilingual Document File

COUR INTEKNATIOKALE DE JUSTICE

MEMOIRES, PLAIDOIRIES ET DOCUMENTS

AFFAIRE RELATIVE AUX DROITS
DES RESSORTISSANTS

DES ÉTATS-UNIS D'AMÉRIQUE

AU MAROC
(FRANCE ÉTATS-UXISD'API~$RIQUE)

VOLUME I
Requête- Pièceécrites

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE

PLEADINGS, ORALARGUMENTS, DOCUMENTS
.- -

CASE CONCERNING RIGHTS OF
NATIONALS OF THE UNITED STATES

OF AMERICA IN MOROCCO
(FRANCEv.UNITED STATES OF ABIERICA)

VOLUME 1
Application.-Pleadings COUli INTERNATIONALE DE JUSTICE
-

AFFAIRE RELATIVE AUX DROITS
DES RESSORTISSANTS

DES ÉTATS-UNIS D'AMÉRIQUE

AU MAROC
(FRANCEc.ÉTATS-UNISD'AMÉRIQUE)

VOLUME 1

Pièceécrites IXTERXATlONr\L COURT OF JUSTICE

PLEADINGS, ORAI, ARGUMI<I\TTS,DOCUMENTS

--

CASE CONCERNING RIGHTS OF
NATIONALS OF THE UNITED STATES

OF AMERICA .IN MOROCCO

(FRANCE v.UNITEII STATES OF AMERICA)

JUDGMENTOF AUÇUST27th,1952

VOLUME 1

PleadingsPIÈCES DE LA PROCÉDURE ÉCRITE

PART1
-

PLEADINGS SECTION A.-APPLICATION INSTITUTING

PROCEEDINGS

1.-THE CHARGR D'AFFAIRES A.1. OF FRAXCE
IN THE NETHERLAXDS
TO THE IIEGISTRAR OF THE COURT

[Translationby tlze Kegistry]
No. 18 The Hague, October z8th, 19jo.

Sir,
1 have the honour to inform you that my Gorernment has
decided to submit to the International Court of Justice a dispute
with the Government of the United States of America concerniiig

the rights of United States nationals in Morocco.
Professor AndréGros, Legal Adviser, and Professor Paul Reuter,
Assistant Legal Adviser, in the French Ministry for Foreign Affairs,
have been officially appointed as Agent and Assistant Agent
respectivelv for the Government of the Republic in this case.

1 enclose here~vith the Application instituting procecdings oii
behalf of the French Government, together with a letter from
Professor Gros.
1 have, etc.
(Sigrted) OLIVIERhI1\?.rii~.

II.-THE AGEXT OF THE GOVEIiX&IEXT OF THE FREXCH
REPUBLIC 'IO THE REGISTRAR OF THE COURT
[Tratwlationby tlie Kegistryj

l'aris, October z7th, 1950.
Sir,
1 have the hoiiour to transmit to you, on hehalf of the Govcrn-
ment of thc Freiich liepublic, an t\pplication instituting proceediiigs
before the InternationalCourt of Jiistice relating to a dispute
with the Governme~>tof the United States of America conceriiing
th< rights of Amcrican nationals in 3Iorocco.
I have, etc. III.-APPLICATION INSTITUTING PROCEEUINGS
ON BEHALF OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE FRENCH
REPUBLIC

[Trunslutior~by the Registry]
To the President,

And the Judges of the Iiiternatioiial Court of Justice,

Thc undersigned, having heen duly authorized by the Govern-
ment of the French Republic, and having chosen the French
Embassy at The Hague as their address for service,

Having regard to Article 36, paragraph 2, of the Statute of the
Court, and the acceptance of the compulsory jurisdiction of the
Court by the Government of the United States on the 26th August
1946, and by the Government of the French Republic on the
18th February 1947,
Having regard to Article IOof the Agreement of 28th June 1948

between France and the United States of America,
Having regard to the Treaty of the 30th March 1912 between
the Govemment of the French Republic and the Shereefian Empire,
Having regard to Article 40, paragraph 1, of the Statute of the

Court,
Have the honour to submit to you the follo~vingApplication :

On 30th December 1948, the Shereefian Government adopted
measurcs subjecting to licence certain imports which do not involre
an officia1allocation of currency, and limiting such imports to a
ccrtain iiumber of products indispensable to the economic system
of Xorocco.
The Goveriimeiit of the United States has declared, in a series of
notes, that this measure, which svas adopted in pursuance of
the cschange control régime established in 1939. affected, in an
essential point, the rights which the American Government regards
as appertaining to it under its treaties with Morocco.
Thus, the Goveriiinent of the United States contends that no
Moroccan law or regulation can be applied to Americaii nationals
in Morocco without its previous consent. The problem raised by

the regulations of 30th December 1948, concerning iniports not
involving an allocation of currency, is therefore only a special
case of a difiiculty of a more general charactcr which places the
Governmeiit of the French Republic, in the exercise of its right
under thc Protectorate Treaty of the 30th March 1912, in oppo-
sition to the Government of the United States, which relies oii
the Treaty of the 16th September 1836, between the United
States and the Emperor of 3Iorocco. -4PPLICATIOX ISSTITUTISG PROCEEDIXGS (27 S j0) 10
111spite of numerous cfforts on the part of the Govcrnment
of the French Repuhlic to arrive at an amicable solution of the

various problems raised hy the regulations of the 30th Ilecember
1948, the Government of the United States only consentcd to a
provisional and tcmporary agreement which was to terminate on
thc 10th Ilecember 1949, but was extended by an arrangement
dated 31st December 1949; in a ilote of 3rd Octobcr 1950, thc
Government of the United States indicated its intcntioii of denounc-
iiig the agreement.
The position of the Government of the United States in regard to
these problems \vas set forth, in particnlar, in a note delivered on
the 9th October 1949, by the United States diplomatic agent at
Tangier to the Resident General of France in hlorocco :the Govern-
ment of the United States made its definitive agreement dependent

on new conditions ; these conditions appeared to the French Govern-
ment, which rejected them, as contrary to the existing treaties.
The first condition was the refund of the consumers-tax paid
by ,.ericaii nationals up to that date.
lhis reimbursement, which would involve a preferential treat-
nient of American nationals. would in fact havc bcen extremely
unfair, becausc thc taxes in question, having been incorporated in
the selling price of the products, had been paid by the consumers,
so that the result would really have been a free gift to American
importers alone, a privilege for which there could be no justification.
The Government of the United States based this claim on the
principle that any Shereefian regulations to which it had not
agreed in advance were inapplicable to its nationals. The American

nationals in llorocco, supportcd by their diplomatic representative,
are seeking in this way to escape the effect of regulations, other
than those of the 30th December 1948, concerning imports not
involving an allocation of currency ; the French Government
proposes to elaborate thesc points before the Court in duc course.
In view of the fact that the Government of the United States
formally recognized the protcctorate of France ovcr Morocco in
its notes of the 2nd January and 20th October 1917, thc Govern-
ment of the French Rcpublic feels unablc to accept claims which
would in fact prevent it froni discharging the mission which it has
assiimed, and which most other States had rccognized long before
1917. either by adhcriiig to various treaties \\!hich defined thc

international status of hforocco, or bj: formally recognizing the
protcctorate assumcd by France.
The only reservations which have ever been formulated by the
United Statesare as follows : they did not, like some other Statcs.
accede to al1the instruments which defined the international status
of Morocco, but, when they formally recognized the French protec-
torate over Morocco, they expressed a desirc, in a notc dated
2nd January 1917, to "consider separately the question of the
recognition of the protcctorate and the question of [the United
States of America's] capitulatory and other rights in Morocco". APPLIC.+TION INSTITUTIKG PROCEEDIKGS (27 s j~) II
The Government of the French Republic will ask the Inter-
national Court of Justice to declare that this sole reservation

concerning "capitulatory and other rights" of the United States
never covered. and could not cover, the extension \%,hich the Goverri-
nient of the Linited States of Anierica is now seeking to give it.
The Treaty concluded between the United States of America aiicl
the Emperor of kIorocco on the 16th September 1S36provides,
in its Articles 20 and 21, only for exemptions from the 1oc:ll
jurisdiction limited to specified cases, and the Government of the
United States cannot deduce therefrom a right to exclutlc the
application of al1 laws and regulations to its nationals in 3lorocco

except with its express consent.
On the other hand, it is only through the operation of the mosc-
favoured-nation clause that the United States nationals were able
to enjoy other privileges than those provided in -4rticles zo and 21
of the Treaty of September 16th, 1836; but as al1 foreign States
have renounced the privileges provided in favour of their nationals
in the separate treaties, the most-favoured-nation claiise could iio
longer justify the extension of such-privileges to nationals of the
United States.
In the second place, the Government of the United States claims

to find in the General Act of the International Conference cif
Algeciras of April 7th, 1906, proof that France, in her conduct of
affairs in Morocco, had departed from the principle of economic
liberty without any inequality, vhich is laid do\i.n iii the Preamble
of that diplomatic instrument. According to the Governmcnt of tlie
French Republic, the actual nieaning of the principle of ccoiiomic
liberty without any inequality must be determined in the light of
the information revealed by international practice, as it is shaped
by economic development and as it results from the interpretatioii
of other treaties coritaining the same principle. The grcat intcrna-

tional instruments by which the States,after thelast conflict, tried
to restore the freedoni of exchanges andto eliniinate discrimination
(in particular, the Agreements of Bretton Woods of July ~2nd.
194. the Agreements on customs tariffs and trade of October 30th.
1947. and thc Charter of Havana of 24th March 1948)authorize a
State to take such nieasures as are necessary to avoid a crisis which
would gravely threaten the foundations of its cconomic cquili-
brium and its monetary stability.
That is why the Government of the United States, in a note
delivered to the French Embassy on zgth July 1949, itself recog-
nized "the need for French filorocco to control its imports, in view

of the present economic conditions of the world"'. Thus the
Government of the United States recognizes that the freedoni
which is claimed by American nationals in Morocco cannot be an
absolute freedom, and that the rule of economic liberty withoiit

'Translationby thc Registry. APPLICATION INSTITUTING PROCEEDINGS (27 X 50) 12
any inequality must be interpreted in the light of other pnnciples,

among which.may be cited those which that Government saw fit
to include in its Agreement with France of 28th june 1948, relating
to the application of the European recovery programme, as well
as in the multilateral conventions mentioned above.

Having resorted, without success, to diplomatic negotiations
on al1the preceding points, the Government of the French Republic
has decided to hring the whole of the questions on which it differs

from the Government of the United States of America before the
International Court of Justice.
Consequently, and without prejudice to any memorial, counter-
memorial, and in general al1other arguments and evidence which
may subsequently be submitted to the Court,

MAY IT PLEASE THE COURT,

To note that the Agent of the Government of the French Republic
has selected the French Embassy at The Hague as an address for
service at the seat of the Court, for al1 notifications and commu-
nications relating to the case ;
To comrnunicate to the Government of the United States of

America the present Application, in accordance with Article 40,
paragraph z, of the Statute of the Court ;
To judge and declare, either in the absence or in the presence
of the said Government, and after such interval of time as the
Court may decide, subject to an agreement between the Parties :

That the privileges of the nationals of the United States of
America in Rlorocco are only those which result from the text of
Articles zo and 21 of the Treaty of September 16th, 1836.and that,
since the most-favoured-nation clause contained in Article 24 of
the said treaty can no longer be invoked by the United States in
the present state of the international obligations of the Shereefian

Empirc, there is nothing to justify the granting to the nationals
of the United States of preferential treatment which would he
contrary to the provisions of the treaties;
That the Government of the United States of America is ni~t
entitled to claim that the application of al1 laws and regulatioiis
to its nationals in Morocco requires its express consent ;

That the nationals uf the United States of America in Aforocço
are snbject to the laws and regulations in force in the Shereefian
Empire, and in particular the regulation of December 3oth, 1948,
on imports not involving an allocation of currency, without the
prior consent of the United States Government ; APPLICATION INSTITUTING PROCEEDINGS (27 X 50) 13

That the dahir of Decernber 3oth, 1948,concerning the regulation
of imports not involvinp..n allocation of currency, is in conformitv
with ihc cconuiiiicsystcni \rliicli is :ipplic:il~lcto .\iorocco,;iccurdin>
IO the cuiii,~nriuns\rhicli biiid 1:ra:~iicthe United Srarcs.

The Agent of the Government
of the French Republic,
(Signed) ANDRÉ GROS.

The Assistant Agent of the Government
of the French Republic,

(Signed) PAUL REUTER.

Bilingual Content

COUR INTEKNATIOKALE DE JUSTICE

MEMOIRES, PLAIDOIRIES ET DOCUMENTS

AFFAIRE RELATIVE AUX DROITS
DES RESSORTISSANTS

DES ÉTATS-UNIS D'AMÉRIQUE

AU MAROC
(FRANCE ÉTATS-UXISD'API~$RIQUE)

VOLUME I
Requête- Pièceécrites

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE

PLEADINGS, ORALARGUMENTS, DOCUMENTS
.- -

CASE CONCERNING RIGHTS OF
NATIONALS OF THE UNITED STATES

OF AMERICA IN MOROCCO
(FRANCEv.UNITED STATES OF ABIERICA)

VOLUME 1
Application.-Pleadings COUli INTERNATIONALE DE JUSTICE
-

AFFAIRE RELATIVE AUX DROITS
DES RESSORTISSANTS

DES ÉTATS-UNIS D'AMÉRIQUE

AU MAROC
(FRANCEc.ÉTATS-UNISD'AMÉRIQUE)

VOLUME 1

Pièceécrites IXTERXATlONr\L COURT OF JUSTICE

PLEADINGS, ORAI, ARGUMI<I\TTS,DOCUMENTS

--

CASE CONCERNING RIGHTS OF
NATIONALS OF THE UNITED STATES

OF AMERICA .IN MOROCCO

(FRANCE v.UNITEII STATES OF AMERICA)

JUDGMENTOF AUÇUST27th,1952

VOLUME 1

PleadingsPIÈCES DE LA PROCÉDURE ÉCRITE

PART1
-

PLEADINGS SECTION A. - REQUÊTE
INTRODUCTIVE D'INSTANCE

1.- LE CHARGÉ 1)'AFFrIIRES A. 1. DE FRANCE

AUX PAYS-BAS
AU GREFFIER DE LA COUR

3" IS 1-a Haye, le 28 octol~re 19jo.

Monsieur le Greffier,
.l'ai l'hontieur tlc poràexrotre connaissance que inon gouvei-
iiemeiit a décidéde souinettrà la Cour internationale de Justice
1111différend avec le Gou\rerncrnent des Etats-Unisd'Amérique
conceriiant les droits des ressortissants des États-Unis au Maroc.
31. le professeur André Gros, jurisconsulte, et hl. le professeur

Paul Kcuter, jurisconsulteadjoint, du rninistére des Affaires
btrarigères français, ont étérespectivement désignés officiellement
comme agent et agent adjoint tlu Gouvernement cle la Répu-
I~lique dans cette affaire.
Je vous prie dc trouver ci-joint, accompagnée d'uiic lettre de
AI.le professeur Gros, la requètc introductive d'instanau nom
tlu GOUT-ernemcritfraiiçais.
\'euillez agrCer, etc.

(Sigtté) 0~ivii:n ÙI:LSET.
-

II.- L'AGEXT DU GOU\'EKNEÙIENT 1)E LA
IZÉPUBLIQUE FRANCAISE AU GREFFIER DE LA COUlZ

Paris, le 27 octobre 19jo.
Monsieur lc Grcftier,

J'ai l'honneur de vous adresser, aii nom di1 Gouvernerneiit
tlela République française, une requête introductive d'instaiice
auprés de la Cour internationale de Justice, exposant uii différend
avec le Gouveriiernent des États-Unisd'.Amériquesur les droits
des ressortissaiits américai~isau hlaroc.
\'euillez agrker, etc.
(Signé) ASI~REGROS SECTION A.-APPLICATION INSTITUTING

PROCEEDINGS

1.-THE CHARGR D'AFFAIRES A.1. OF FRAXCE
IN THE NETHERLAXDS
TO THE IIEGISTRAR OF THE COURT

[Translationby tlze Kegistry]
No. 18 The Hague, October z8th, 19jo.

Sir,
1 have the honour to inform you that my Gorernment has
decided to submit to the International Court of Justice a dispute
with the Government of the United States of America concerniiig

the rights of United States nationals in Morocco.
Professor AndréGros, Legal Adviser, and Professor Paul Reuter,
Assistant Legal Adviser, in the French Ministry for Foreign Affairs,
have been officially appointed as Agent and Assistant Agent
respectivelv for the Government of the Republic in this case.

1 enclose here~vith the Application instituting procecdings oii
behalf of the French Government, together with a letter from
Professor Gros.
1 have, etc.
(Sigrted) OLIVIERhI1\?.rii~.

II.-THE AGEXT OF THE GOVEIiX&IEXT OF THE FREXCH
REPUBLIC 'IO THE REGISTRAR OF THE COURT
[Tratwlationby tlie Kegistryj

l'aris, October z7th, 1950.
Sir,
1 have the hoiiour to transmit to you, on hehalf of the Govcrn-
ment of thc Freiich liepublic, an t\pplication instituting proceediiigs
before the InternationalCourt of Jiistice relating to a dispute
with the Governme~>tof the United States of America conceriiing
th< rights of Amcrican nationals in 3Iorocco.
I have, etc. III. - REQUÊTE INTRODUCTIVE 1)'INSTANCE
.\U NO31 DU GOUVERNEhfENT DE LA RÉPUBLIQUE
FRANÇAISE

.\ Monsieur le Président,

.\ Messieurs les Juges de la Cour internationale de Justice,

Les soussignés, dûment autorisés par le Gouvernement de la
République française, élisant domicile au siège de l'ambassade
de France à La Haye,
Vu l'article 36, paragraphe 2, du Statut de la Cour et I'accep-
tation de la juridiction obligatoire de la Cour par le Gouver-
nement des États-Unis le 26 août 1946 et par le Gouvernement
de la Républiclue française le 18 février 1947,

Vq l'articleIO de l'accord du 28 juin 194s entre la France et
les Etats-Unis d'Amérique,
Vu le traité du 30 mars 1912 entre le Gouverncment de la
Répiiblique française et l'Empire chérifien,

lru l'article 40, alinéI, du Statut de la Cour,

Ont l'honneur de vous adresser la requête suivante :

Le 30 décembre 1948, le Gouvernement chérifien a pris des
mesures pour soiimettre à licence les importations ne comportant
pas allocation officielle de devises et pour limiter ces importations
à un certain nombre de produits indispensables à l'économie
marocaine.
Par plilsieurs notes, le Gouvernement des États-Unis a affirmé
que cette mesure, prise en application du régime de contrôle des
changes établi en 1939%mettait en question sur un point essentiel
les droits que le Gouvernement américain estime tenir des traités
qui le lient au Maroc.
Le Gouvernement des États-unis prétend cil effet qu'auciin
teste législatif ou réglementaire marocain ne peut être appliqué

ails ressortissants américains au Maroc sans son accord préalable.
Le problème posé par la réglementation du 30 décembre 1948
sur les importations sans devises n'est donc qu'un cas particulier
d'une difficultégénéralequi oppose le Gouvernement de la Répu-
blique française dans l'exercice des droits qu'il tient du traité
de protectorat di1 30 mars 1912, et le Gouvernement des Etats-
Unis, qui iiivoque le traité du 16 septembre 1836 entre les Etats-
Unis et l'empereur du Maroc. III.-APPLICATION INSTITUTING PROCEEUINGS
ON BEHALF OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE FRENCH
REPUBLIC

[Trunslutior~by the Registry]
To the President,

And the Judges of the Iiiternatioiial Court of Justice,

Thc undersigned, having heen duly authorized by the Govern-
ment of the French Republic, and having chosen the French
Embassy at The Hague as their address for service,

Having regard to Article 36, paragraph 2, of the Statute of the
Court, and the acceptance of the compulsory jurisdiction of the
Court by the Government of the United States on the 26th August
1946, and by the Government of the French Republic on the
18th February 1947,
Having regard to Article IOof the Agreement of 28th June 1948

between France and the United States of America,
Having regard to the Treaty of the 30th March 1912 between
the Govemment of the French Republic and the Shereefian Empire,
Having regard to Article 40, paragraph 1, of the Statute of the

Court,
Have the honour to submit to you the follo~vingApplication :

On 30th December 1948, the Shereefian Government adopted
measurcs subjecting to licence certain imports which do not involre
an officia1allocation of currency, and limiting such imports to a
ccrtain iiumber of products indispensable to the economic system
of Xorocco.
The Goveriimeiit of the United States has declared, in a series of
notes, that this measure, which svas adopted in pursuance of
the cschange control régime established in 1939. affected, in an
essential point, the rights which the American Government regards
as appertaining to it under its treaties with Morocco.
Thus, the Goveriiinent of the United States contends that no
Moroccan law or regulation can be applied to Americaii nationals
in Morocco without its previous consent. The problem raised by

the regulations of 30th December 1948, concerning iniports not
involving an allocation of currency, is therefore only a special
case of a difiiculty of a more general charactcr which places the
Governmeiit of the French Republic, in the exercise of its right
under thc Protectorate Treaty of the 30th March 1912, in oppo-
sition to the Government of the United States, which relies oii
the Treaty of the 16th September 1836, between the United
States and the Emperor of 3Iorocco.IO KEQU~TE ISTRODUCTIYE I)'ISSTAKCE (27 s j~)
Nalgré de riombreuses tentatives de la part du Gouvernemeiit
de la République française pour trouver une solution amiable

aux différentsproblèmes poséspar 15 réglementation du 30 décem-
bre 1948, le Gouvernemcnt des Etats-Unis n'a donné à cette
réglenientation qu'un accord provisoire et temporaire, qui devait
prendre fi1le IO décembre 1949, mais fut prolongé par un arran-
gement du 31 décembre 1949 : par une note du 3 octobre rgjo,
le Gouvernement des États-Unis fait présager la dénonciation
de l'accord.
La position du Gouvernemeiit des États-Unis sur ces problèmes
fut développée notamment dans.une note remisc le g octobre 1949
à la Résidence générale de France au Maroc par l'agent diplo-
matique des États-Unis à Tanger: le Gouvernement des Etats-
Unis subordonnait son accord définitif à de nouvelles conditions ;
celles-ci apparurent au Gouvernement français, qui les déclina,

comme contraires aux traités existants.
La première était le remboursement aux ressortissants améri-
cains des taxes de consommation payées jusqu'à cette date.
Ce remboursement générateur d'un traitement préférentiel cri
faveur des ressortissants américains eût été en fait profondément
inéquitable parce que ces taxes, incorporées au prix des produits
vendus, ont été acquittécs par les consommateurs et qu'il s'agirait
en vérité d'un don gratuit aux seuls importateurs américains,
privilège que rien ne saurait justifier.
Le Gouvernement des États-Unis fondait cette prétention sur
le principe que toute réglementation chérifienne qui n'a pas reçu
au préalable son accord est inapplicable à ses ressortissants. Les

ressortissants américains au Naroc, appuyés par lcur représen-
tation diplomatique, entendent échapper de ccttc manière i
d'autres réglementations que celle du 30 décembre 1946 sur les
importations sans devises ;le Gouvernement français se réserx-e
de développer ces points devant la Cour en temps utile.
.&lorsque le Gouvernement des États-Unis a de façon formelle
reconnu le protectorat de la France sur le Maroc par les notes
des 2 janvier et 20 octobrc 1917, le Gouvernemeiit de la Répu-
blique française ne saurait accepter des prétentions qui abou-
tiraient en faità l'empêcher dc remplir la mission qu'il a assumée
et que l'ensemble des autres États avait reconnue bien avant
1917, soit en adhérant aux divcrs traités qui définissent le statut
international du Maroc, soit en reconnaissaiit formcllcmcnt le
protectorat assumé par la France.

Les seiiles réserves que les États-Unis aient jamais énoncées
sont les suivantes: ils n'ont pas, comme d'autres États, adhéré
à tous les actes qui définirent le statut international du illaroc.
mais, lorsqu'ils ont formellement reconnu le protectorat français
sur le Maroc, ils ont dans une note du 2 janvier 1917 exprimé
le désirde « considérer séparémentla question de la reconnaissance
du protectorat et la question des droits, capitulaires ou autres,
[des États-unis] au Afaroc B. -4PPLICATIOX ISSTITUTISG PROCEEDIXGS (27 S j0) 10
111spite of numerous cfforts on the part of the Govcrnment
of the French Repuhlic to arrive at an amicable solution of the

various problems raised hy the regulations of the 30th Ilecember
1948, the Government of the United States only consentcd to a
provisional and tcmporary agreement which was to terminate on
thc 10th Ilecember 1949, but was extended by an arrangement
dated 31st December 1949; in a ilote of 3rd Octobcr 1950, thc
Government of the United States indicated its intcntioii of denounc-
iiig the agreement.
The position of the Government of the United States in regard to
these problems \vas set forth, in particnlar, in a note delivered on
the 9th October 1949, by the United States diplomatic agent at
Tangier to the Resident General of France in hlorocco :the Govern-
ment of the United States made its definitive agreement dependent

on new conditions ; these conditions appeared to the French Govern-
ment, which rejected them, as contrary to the existing treaties.
The first condition was the refund of the consumers-tax paid
by ,.ericaii nationals up to that date.
lhis reimbursement, which would involve a preferential treat-
nient of American nationals. would in fact havc bcen extremely
unfair, becausc thc taxes in question, having been incorporated in
the selling price of the products, had been paid by the consumers,
so that the result would really have been a free gift to American
importers alone, a privilege for which there could be no justification.
The Government of the United States based this claim on the
principle that any Shereefian regulations to which it had not
agreed in advance were inapplicable to its nationals. The American

nationals in llorocco, supportcd by their diplomatic representative,
are seeking in this way to escape the effect of regulations, other
than those of the 30th December 1948, concerning imports not
involving an allocation of currency ; the French Government
proposes to elaborate thesc points before the Court in duc course.
In view of the fact that the Government of the United States
formally recognized the protcctorate of France ovcr Morocco in
its notes of the 2nd January and 20th October 1917, thc Govern-
ment of the French Rcpublic feels unablc to accept claims which
would in fact prevent it froni discharging the mission which it has
assiimed, and which most other States had rccognized long before
1917. either by adhcriiig to various treaties \\!hich defined thc

international status of hforocco, or bj: formally recognizing the
protcctorate assumcd by France.
The only reservations which have ever been formulated by the
United Statesare as follows : they did not, like some other Statcs.
accede to al1the instruments which defined the international status
of Morocco, but, when they formally recognized the French protec-
torate over Morocco, they expressed a desirc, in a notc dated
2nd January 1917, to "consider separately the question of the
recognition of the protcctorate and the question of [the United
States of America's] capitulatory and other rights in Morocco".II REQU~TE ISTRODUCTIVE D'IKSTASCE (27 .Y50)

Le Gouvernement de la République française se propose de
faire établir par la Cour internationale de Justice ue cette seule
réserve rdes droits, capitulaires ou autres i)des 8 tats-Unis n'a

jamais comporté et ne peut comporter l'extension que prétend
actuellement lui donner le Gouvernement des Etats-Unis d'Amé-
rique. Le traité conclu entre les États-Unis d'Amérique et I'em-
pereur du Maroc le 16 septembre 1836 prévoit uniquement, dans
ses articles20 et 21, une exemption de la juridiction locale limitée
à des cas précis, et le Gouvernement des États-Unis ne peut en
déduire le droit de n'accepter l'application à ses ressortissants au
Maroc de toute législation et réglementation qu'avec son conseil-
tement exprès.
D'autre part, ce n'est que par le jeu de la clause de la ~iation
la plus favorisée que les ressortissants des Etats-Unis ont pu
bénéficierd'autres privilèges que ceux prévus dans-les articles 20

et 21 du traité du 16 septembre 1836 ;mais tous les Etats étrangers
ayant renoncé aux privilèges stipulés dans les traités particuliers
en faveur de leurs ressortissants, le jeu de la clause de la nation
la plus favorisée ne saurait plus provoquer leur extension aux
ressortissants des Etats-Unis.
En second lieu, le Gouvernemeiit des États-unis prétend tirer
de l'acte généralde la conférence internationale d'Algésiras du
7 avril 1906 la preuve que la France, dans son action au Maroc,
s'est écartée du principe de la liberté économique sans aucune
inégalité qui est affirmé dans le préambule de cet instrument
diplomatique. Selon le Gouvernement de la République française,
le contenu coiicret du principe de la liberté économique sans

aucune inégalité doit être déterminé en fonction des données
révélées par la pratique internationale, telle qu'elle se dégage de
l'évolution économique et de l'interprétation d'autres traités
contenant le fnêmeprincipe. Les grands actes internationaux par
lesquels les I:tats,à la suite du dernier conflit, se sont efforcés
de revenir à la liberté des échanges et de faire disparaître. les
discriminations (notamment les accords de Bretton Woods du
22 juillet 1944, les accords sur les tarifs douaniers et le commerce
du 30 octobre 1947 et la charte de La Havane du 24 mars 1948)
ont prévu pour un État le droit de prendre les mesures néces-
saires pour éviter une crise qui menacerait gravement ses conditions
mêmesd'équilibre économique et de stabilité monétaire.

Aussi bien le Gouvernement des États-Unis lui-m2me a-t-il,
dans une note remise à l'ambassade de France le 29 juillet 1949.
reconnu a la nécessité pour le Maroc français de contrôler ses
importations étant donné les conditions ~conomiques actuelles du
monde],. Ainsi, le Gouvernement des Etats-Unis reconnaît que
la liberté à laquelle prétendent les ressortissants américains au
Maroc ne saurait être une liberté absolue et que la règle de la APPLIC.+TION INSTITUTIKG PROCEEDIKGS (27 s j~) II
The Government of the French Republic will ask the Inter-
national Court of Justice to declare that this sole reservation

concerning "capitulatory and other rights" of the United States
never covered. and could not cover, the extension \%,hich the Goverri-
nient of the Linited States of Anierica is now seeking to give it.
The Treaty concluded between the United States of America aiicl
the Emperor of kIorocco on the 16th September 1S36provides,
in its Articles 20 and 21, only for exemptions from the 1oc:ll
jurisdiction limited to specified cases, and the Government of the
United States cannot deduce therefrom a right to exclutlc the
application of al1 laws and regulations to its nationals in 3lorocco

except with its express consent.
On the other hand, it is only through the operation of the mosc-
favoured-nation clause that the United States nationals were able
to enjoy other privileges than those provided in -4rticles zo and 21
of the Treaty of September 16th, 1836; but as al1 foreign States
have renounced the privileges provided in favour of their nationals
in the separate treaties, the most-favoured-nation claiise could iio
longer justify the extension of such-privileges to nationals of the
United States.
In the second place, the Government of the United States claims

to find in the General Act of the International Conference cif
Algeciras of April 7th, 1906, proof that France, in her conduct of
affairs in Morocco, had departed from the principle of economic
liberty without any inequality, vhich is laid do\i.n iii the Preamble
of that diplomatic instrument. According to the Governmcnt of tlie
French Republic, the actual nieaning of the principle of ccoiiomic
liberty without any inequality must be determined in the light of
the information revealed by international practice, as it is shaped
by economic development and as it results from the interpretatioii
of other treaties coritaining the same principle. The grcat intcrna-

tional instruments by which the States,after thelast conflict, tried
to restore the freedoni of exchanges andto eliniinate discrimination
(in particular, the Agreements of Bretton Woods of July ~2nd.
194. the Agreements on customs tariffs and trade of October 30th.
1947. and thc Charter of Havana of 24th March 1948)authorize a
State to take such nieasures as are necessary to avoid a crisis which
would gravely threaten the foundations of its cconomic cquili-
brium and its monetary stability.
That is why the Government of the United States, in a note
delivered to the French Embassy on zgth July 1949, itself recog-
nized "the need for French filorocco to control its imports, in view

of the present economic conditions of the world"'. Thus the
Government of the United States recognizes that the freedoni
which is claimed by American nationals in Morocco cannot be an
absolute freedom, and that the rule of economic liberty withoiit

'Translationby thc Registry.12 REQUÈTE IXTROI>UCTI~E ~)'ISST:ISCE (27 s jo)
liberté économique sans aucune inégalité doit être intcrprStée à

la lumière d'autres principes, parmi lesquels on pourrait notam-
ment citer ceux que ce gouvernement a tenu à insérer dans
l'accord conclu avec la France le 28 juin 1948, relatif à l'appli-
cation du programme de relèvement européen, comme dans les
conventions multilatérales citées plus haut.
Ayant vainement cu recours à la négociation diplomatique sur
tous les points précédents, le Gouvernement de la République
française a décidéde porter l'ensemble des questions sur lesquelles il
s'oppose au Gouvernement des Etats-Unis d'.Amériquedevant la
Cour internationale de Justice.

En conséquence, et sous réservede tous mémoire,contre-mémoire
et en généralde tous moyens et preuves à présenter iiltérieiirement
à la Cour,

I'L~\ISE A LA COUR,

Donner acte à l'agent du Gouvernenient de la République fran-
çaise que, pour toutes notifications et communications relatives à
la présenteaffaire, il élitdoniicile au s@gede l'ambassade de France
à La Haye ;
Xotifier la présente requête,conformément àl'article 40, aliné2,
doStatut de la Cour, au Gouvernement des États-Unis d'Amérique ;

1)irc et juger, tant en l'absence qu'en présence dodit gouverne-
nient et après tel délai que, sous réserve d'un accord entre les
I'arties, il appartiendrai la Cour de fixer :

Quc les privilèges des ressortissants des États-Unis d'Amérique
au hlaroc sont uniquement ceux qui résultent du texte des arti-
cles 20 et 21 du traité du 16 septembre 1836 et que, la clause de
la nation la plus favoriséecontenue dans l'article 24 dudit traité ne
pouvant plus êtreinvoquée par les Etats-Unis dans l'état actuel
des engagements internationaux de l'Empire chérifien, rien ne
justifie pour les ressortissants des États-Unis un régime préférentiel
qui serait contraire aux dispositions des traités ;

Que Ic Gouvernement des États-Unis d'Amérique n'est pas en
droit de prétendre que l'application i ses ressortissants au Maroc
dc toutes législations et réglementations dépend de son consente-
ment exprès ;
Que les ressortissants des États-Unis cl'Américluean Maroc sont

soumis aux dispositions législatives et réglenientaires mises en
vigueur dans l'Empire chérifien, notamment en ce qiii concerne la
réglemcntation du 30 décembre 1948 sur les importations, sans
devises, sans que l'accord préalable du Gouvernement des Etats-
Unis soit nécessaire ; APPLICATION INSTITUTING PROCEEDINGS (27 X 50) 12
any inequality must be interpreted in the light of other pnnciples,

among which.may be cited those which that Government saw fit
to include in its Agreement with France of 28th june 1948, relating
to the application of the European recovery programme, as well
as in the multilateral conventions mentioned above.

Having resorted, without success, to diplomatic negotiations
on al1the preceding points, the Government of the French Republic
has decided to hring the whole of the questions on which it differs

from the Government of the United States of America before the
International Court of Justice.
Consequently, and without prejudice to any memorial, counter-
memorial, and in general al1other arguments and evidence which
may subsequently be submitted to the Court,

MAY IT PLEASE THE COURT,

To note that the Agent of the Government of the French Republic
has selected the French Embassy at The Hague as an address for
service at the seat of the Court, for al1 notifications and commu-
nications relating to the case ;
To comrnunicate to the Government of the United States of

America the present Application, in accordance with Article 40,
paragraph z, of the Statute of the Court ;
To judge and declare, either in the absence or in the presence
of the said Government, and after such interval of time as the
Court may decide, subject to an agreement between the Parties :

That the privileges of the nationals of the United States of
America in Rlorocco are only those which result from the text of
Articles zo and 21 of the Treaty of September 16th, 1836.and that,
since the most-favoured-nation clause contained in Article 24 of
the said treaty can no longer be invoked by the United States in
the present state of the international obligations of the Shereefian

Empirc, there is nothing to justify the granting to the nationals
of the United States of preferential treatment which would he
contrary to the provisions of the treaties;
That the Government of the United States of America is ni~t
entitled to claim that the application of al1 laws and regulatioiis
to its nationals in Morocco requires its express consent ;

That the nationals uf the United States of America in Aforocço
are snbject to the laws and regulations in force in the Shereefian
Empire, and in particular the regulation of December 3oth, 1948,
on imports not involving an allocation of currency, without the
prior consent of the United States Government ; Que le dahir du 30 décembre 1948portant réglementation des
importations sansdevises est conforme au régime économique
applicable au Maroc selon les conventions qui lient la France et
les États-Unis.

L'Agent du Gouvernement
de la République française,
(Signé) ANDRÉ GROS.

L'Agent adjoint du Gouvernement
de la République française,

(Signé) PAUL REUTER. APPLICATION INSTITUTING PROCEEDINGS (27 X 50) 13

That the dahir of Decernber 3oth, 1948,concerning the regulation
of imports not involvinp..n allocation of currency, is in conformitv
with ihc cconuiiiicsystcni \rliicli is :ipplic:il~lcto .\iorocco,;iccurdin>
IO the cuiii,~nriuns\rhicli biiid 1:ra:~iicthe United Srarcs.

The Agent of the Government
of the French Republic,
(Signed) ANDRÉ GROS.

The Assistant Agent of the Government
of the French Republic,

(Signed) PAUL REUTER.

Document file FR
Document Long Title

Application instituting proceedings

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