Application of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Azerbaijan v. Armenia) - Conclusion of the public hearings on the request for the indication of pr

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
Peace Palace, Carnegieplein 2, 2517 KJ The Hague, Netherlands
Tel.: +31 (0)70 302 2323 Fax: +31 (0)70 364 9928
Website Twitter YouTube LinkedIn
Press Release
Unofficial
No. 2021/28
19 October 2021
Application of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Azerbaijan v. Armenia) Conclusion of the public hearings on the request for the indication of provisional measures submitted by the Republic of Azerbaijan The Court to begin its deliberation
THE HAGUE, 19 October 2021. The public hearings on the request for the indication of provisional measures submitted by the Republic of Azerbaijan in the case concerning Application of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Azerbaijan v. Armenia) were concluded today. The Court will now begin its deliberation.
During the hearings, which opened on Monday 18 October 2021 at the Peace Palace, the seat of the Court, the delegation of Azerbaijan was led by H.E. Mr. Elnur Mammadov, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, Republic of Azerbaijan, as Agent. The delegation of Armenia was led by H.E. Mr. Yeghishe Kirakosyan, Representative of the Republic of Armenia before the European Court of Human Rights, as Agent.
The Court’s decision on the request for the indication of provisional measures will be delivered at a public sitting, the date of which will be announced in due course.
Requests of the Parties
At the end of the hearings, the Agents of the Parties made the following requests to the Court:
For the Republic of Azerbaijan:
“In accordance with Article 60(2) of the Rules of Court, on the basis of the facts and law set out in the Republic of Azerbaijan’s Request for the Indication of Provisional Measures of Protection dated 23 September 2021, and for the reasons explained during these hearings, the Republic of Azerbaijan respectfully asks the Court to indicate the following provisional measures:
(a) Armenia shall take all necessary steps to enable Azerbaijan to undertake the prompt, safe and effective demining of the landmines laid in Azerbaijan’s territory by the Armenian military and/or other groups under the direction, control, or sponsorship
- 2 -
of Armenia, including by immediately providing comprehensive and accurate information about the location and characteristics of landmines in Azerbaijan’s territory;
(b) Armenia shall immediately cease and desist from endangering the lives of Azerbaijanis by planting or promoting or facilitating the planting of landmines in Azerbaijan’s territory;
(c) Armenia shall take all necessary steps effectively to prevent organizations operating in Armenian territory, including the VoMA organization, from engaging in the incitement of racial hatred and racially-motivated violence targeted at Azerbaijanis, and immediately shall cease and desist incitement based on the fabrication of public and private hate speech attributed to Azerbaijanis on Twitter and other social media and traditional media channels;
(d) Armenia shall take effective measures to collect, and to prevent the destruction and ensure the preservation of, evidence related to allegations of ethnically-motivated crimes against Azerbaijanis of which it is aware, including those identified in communications from the Republic of Azerbaijan;
(e) Armenia shall refrain from any measure that might aggravate, extend, or make more difficult the resolution of this dispute; and
(f) Armenia shall submit a report to the Court on all measures taken to give effect to its Order indicating provisional measures within three months, as from the date of the Order, and thereafter every six months, until a final decision on the case is rendered by the Court.”
For the Republic of Armenia:
“On the basis of its oral pleadings, Armenia respectfully requests the Court to reject Azerbaijan’s requests for the indication of provisional measures in full.”
___________
History of the proceedings
The history of the proceedings can be found in press releases Nos. 2021/21 and 2021/24, available on the Court’s website.
___________
Note: The Court’s press releases are prepared by its Registry for information purposes only and do not constitute official documents.
___________
- 3 -
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. It was established by the United Nations Charter in June 1945 and began its activities in April 1946. The Court is composed of 15 judges elected for a nine-year term by the General Assembly and the Security Council of the United Nations. The seat of the Court is at the Peace Palace in The Hague (Netherlands). The Court has a twofold role: first, to settle, in accordance with international law, through judgments which have binding force and are without appeal for the parties concerned, legal disputes submitted to it by States; and, second, to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by duly authorized United Nations organs and agencies of the system.
___________
Information Department:
Mr. Andrey Poskakukhin, First Secretary of the Court, Head of Department (+31 (0)70 302 2336)
Ms Joanne Moore, Information Officer (+31 (0)70 302 2337)
Mr. Avo Sevag Garabet, Associate Information Officer (+31 (0)70 302 2394)
Ms Genoveva Madurga, Administrative Assistant (+31 (0)70 302 2396)