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: www.icj-cij.org
Press Release
Unofficial
No. 2009/29
9 October 2009
Accordance with International Law of the Unilateral Declaration of Independence
by the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government of Kosovo
(Request for Advisory Opinion)
The Court will hold public hearings from Tuesday 1 December
to Friday 11 December 2009
Thirty States and the authors of the unilateral declaration of independence
have expressed their intention of participating in the oral proceedings
THE HAGUE, 9October2009. The Internati onal Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal
judicial organ of the United Nations, will hold public hearings on the question of the Accordance
with International Law of the Unilateral Decl aration of Independence by the Provisional
Institutions of Self-Government of Kosovo (request for advisory opinion) from Tuesday
1 December to Friday 11 December 2009, at the Peace Palace in The Hague, seat of the Court.
Thirty States and the authors of the unilateral declaration of independence have expressed
their intention of participating in the oral ceedings before the Court. These States are, in
alphabetical order: Albania, Argentina, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Belarus, Bolivia, Brazil,
Bulgaria, Burundi, China, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmar k, Finland, France, Germany, Jordan, the Lao
People’s Democratic Republic, the Netherlands, No rway, Romania, the Russian Federation, Saudi
Arabia, Serbia, Spain, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the United States
of America, Venezuela and Viet Nam.
The schedule for the hearings adopted by the Court is as follows:
Tuesday 1 December 2009 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: ⎯ Serbia (3 hours)
3 p.m.-6 p.m.: ⎯ Authors of the unilateral declaration
of independence (3 hours)
Wednesday 2 December 2009 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: ⎯ Albania (45 mins.)
⎯ Germany (45 mins.)
⎯ Saudi Arabia (45 mins.)
⎯ Argentina (45 mins.) - 2 -
Thursday 3 December 2009 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: ⎯ Austria (45 mins.)
⎯ Azerbaijan (45 mins.)
⎯ Bahrain (45 mins.)
⎯ Belarus (45 mins.)
Friday 4 December 2009 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: ⎯ Bolivia (45 mins.)
⎯ Brazil (45 mins.)
⎯ Bulgaria (45 mins.)
⎯ Burundi (45 mins.)
Monday 7 December 2009 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: ⎯ China (45 mins.)
⎯ Cyprus (45 mins.)
⎯ Croatia (45 mins.)
⎯ Denmark (45 mins.)
Tuesday 8 December 2009 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: ⎯ Spain (45 mins.)
⎯ United States of America (45 mins.)
⎯ Russian Federation (45 mins.)
⎯ Finland (45 mins.)
Wednesday 9 December 2009 10 a.m.-12.15 p.m.: ⎯ France (45 mins.)
⎯ Jordan (45 mins.)
⎯ Norway (45 mins.)
Thursday 10 December 2009 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: ⎯ Netherlands (45 mins.)
⎯ Lao People’s Democratic Republic
(45 mins.)
⎯ Romania (45 mins.)
⎯ United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Northern Ireland (45 mins.)
Friday 11 December 2009 10 a.m.-11.30 a.m.: ⎯ Venezuela (45 mins.)
⎯ Viet Nam (45 mins.)
History of the proceedings
For the history of the proceedings, see Press Re lease 2009/27 of 29 July 2009, available on
the Court’s website (www.icj-cij.org).
*
It is recalled that the written proceeding(the texts of the written statements and written
comments filed by Member States of the United Na tions, and the texts of the written contributions
filed by the authors of the unilateral declaration of independence by the Provisional Institutions of
Self-Government of Kosovo) remain confidential until the Court decides to make them accessible
to the public, at the opening of the oral proceedings or at a later date.
* - 3 -
IMPORTANT NOTE TO THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS ,THE PRESS AND GENERAL PUBLIC
1. The hearings will be held in the Great Ha ll of Justice of the Peace Palace, which will be
reserved for participants in the proceedings a nd the Diplomatic Corps. The media will be
accommodated in a press centre. The public will be admitted to a small room (with a very limited
number of seats) in which the hearings will be transmitted live.
2. Members of the Diplomatic Corps will be informed shortly of the procedure organized
for them. A number of entry passes will be provided at the appropriate time.
3. An online accreditation procedure will open for the media at 12 noon on Monday
26October 2009 on the Court’s website. Details of this procedure will be provided in a Media
Advisory issued on that day. The accreditati on procedure will close at midnight on Tuesday
24 November 2009.
4. Groups and individual visitors are subject to an online admission procedure which will
open at 12 noon on Monday 26October 2009. They will be required to complete one of the two
forms provided on the Court’s website (to the right of the screen under “Calendar”, click on
“Attending a hearing” and follow the instructions ). This procedure will close at midnight on
Tuesday 24 November 2009.
___________
Information Department:
Mr. Andrey Poskakukhin, First Secretary of the Court, Head of Department (+31 (0)70 302 2336)
Messrs. Boris Heim and Maxime Schouppe, Information Officers (+31 (0)70 302 2337)
Ms Joanne Moore, Associate Information Officer (+31 (0)70 302 2394)
Ms Barbara Dalsbaek, Administrative Assistant (+31 (0) 70 302 2396)
Accordance with International Law of the Unilateral Declaration of Independence by the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government of Kosovo (Request for Advisory Opinion) - The Court will hold public hearings from Tuesday 1 December to Friday 11 December 2009 - Thirty States and the authors of the unilateral declaration of independence have expressed their intention of participating in the oral proceedings