Order of 30 March 1998

iNTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE

1998 YEAR 1998
M Ma&
GzNa87

CASECONCERNING MARITIME DELIMITATION

AND TERRITORIALQUESTIONS
BETWEEN QATARAND BAHRATN

(QATAR vBAHRAIN)

Prest:iPresidmrSCHWEIELV: icePr~sirWEERAMAN~RK Jdg~5
ODA .~AOUI.OUIUUME ~NJLYA.Hmmn, SHI. FLEISCH-
HAVER.KOROMA V.ER~CH~N. H[G~L% PARRA-ARAWUREX,
KOOIJMAK RLE~EK: ad hoc TOPREBEUNARDU.
Fwin~~ ;~gifirVAUNCIA-OSPIM.

The1niernationalCouofJustice.

HavingregartoArticie43.4and49oftheSratutortheCounand
io Artide331,44.45 anoftheRulesofCourt,

HavlngregardttheJudgmcnigiwnby ihcCounon 1July159and
15February1995oihcquaionsofjurisdictnndadmkbilityin the
a*.
HavingregartotheOrder&ted 28April195and 1Fcbniar19%.
wherebtheCourtsuccmiveiyfix29February1996asthetimc-limii
for thfilingby cachihcPartiof aMernoriaolnthe mritand
txtundethatiirne-lto3ûSeptembcr1996, Havingregardto thManorials 6iadwithithelimdimit soextendeci,
Having esrd eo theOrderdsied 30Ocrobcr 19% whby thehi-
&nt ofthe Corn fixai31Dacwnbc1 r997as thetirne-limorthe Wing
by =ch ofthePark ora Counier-Mamoro dnthe muits;
Whereas,by albterdatcd25Sqtemkt 1997. theAgent of theStaie
of Bahraininfomtd the Courtthat hisGov~nimentcbilkxi@ the
auiheniiciof 81docum~, CO* ofwhichhadkn pdwd by the

SiatcofQaiaras annexa toitsMmorial: whcms itwassiatui inihn
letterthrthemaiter,broughtm the Court'attentionYor suchaction
as Fi]mmy deem apprapriate". as"distinaand wvcrabk fromthe
merit$'whew it wartatedintbektterthntBatiraiwuld disregad
therxnittnofthehuments W qutsrionîor thprpaçeaofprcparing
itsCounkr-Mcrnorhl: and wkms that Ittier ws stnt whh varwus
documca iwh and expcrtfreporrs:

Whcms. bya Itiidatd 8Qctakr 1997.theAgcntoCQai~ nformd
theC~urtthal. ihk Go\rmmrni's i9itu..tobjectionmised byBnh-
rainIOpünicdardwmenis produccd byQaiar urrtlinktd10rhtrnrnts
and.ihtrcfore.huld "ix considcreand deimnined wiibinthefri~nw-
workof the mdis ofthe aise"and ~i~trclhcndJed thuitheCoun
couldno!.hwever. "expcctQÿturai theprewnlritigoCprtpuniiionor
ilsouriCounter-Mernoriato comment onihc dcluikdBahmin iiillep-
iions":

Whcreus.bya leittrdard 17 a'tohr 1997.ihr Agni of hhrdin
staitdihahisGoverrimenc torniderihatthe uscb>Qaiu ofthcch;il-
Imgd dacumcnts gdveri* IO"pro~~durüldiflicultihat sitikcuthe
fundmtiils of ik orderly develoyrimitd ihe cm?": whtw,u hc
oknd thatihequestionotrk aurheniiciof ihrsaiddor.umrs {vus
-'logiealprcliminarto,iuidsevcrabtcrrom thedeterminririonriis
wbsiantht tffeci"and ivhwas hc wndudcd ihat "ibis obscrviirion
should.in Bühmin' ubmission dctmine theprdural iipprwicio
lxtakenat thksiügc:and whcrcasb.yileiterdaid 18NowmberlQu7.
ihiApt orBahmin inrormediht Courtofs"m dcvclopmcntw "hich
wns releviiro-t ofihe authenik-tofthedocumentsproducd
by Qatar;
Whcm ai ameetinghtl dy thePmidenid ihcCoution25 Notm-
ber 1997withihcAgentsof ik Partiesinordertoiisoertitheirviens
on thesubsequen proccduret.hApnis dtrrated thepositionofihtir
mpctive Govmrntnu: wvhetis Qiitisritcdihatiiwould bcableio
=pond infuii ioBiihr~iin5utgtioninoftheoiuihmticiial thdm-
menuannctltd toitsMernoriaonlyina dmwmeni iobeappcndcd 10itr
Rtply:and whereas,airk end of thamwing. it waa& in1c.raliu
thai theCounter-Mernoriabwuid not cowr ihoitquaion and that
othcrpkadingswould k submitredbythehrtk ai a!atm date: WfKieas tktCounter-Mernoria if the Partiewm ddy fil4and
exchan@ on 23bmbr 1997;and whems.in theintroductito iu
Couter-Manorial,Bsihiainconfirmecihat,indmwingupits Cornter-
Maorial, iiha&diirdd the81 Qatarcimumatg theaurhcntidtof
whichwas chalhged+ andit sta;ithatitAgent'slaterdatd 25 Sep
lember 1997shouldlxtmtad asformi4 p4lrtfit&unter-Mdl;

Whertas,bya lmtr dard 31 kmk 997, theAgent ofBabrain
senttheCourtparticdmdwmmts supplcmcntin ghosepresmitd an
25 Scpernbtr1W;
Wha. by a letiedatd 2 February 1998,theAgent of Bahrain,
ming ihi Qatar was mntinuingin itsCountcr-Memuria tl reiyon
thecballm& documents e,mpWrcd theneadfortheCourt todcU&
thequestionofthtirauthmtkityas aprdimina ryt by miniaining
that-aü elerncnuofQatar'sclaim areaireci& rd by pintin~ oui
"thecomplicationasndcxpmse" 10 whichihcy woutd giw riseinhjs
Goirrnmcnt'sopinion.ifthaquesth wereio bcdcfd:
Whereas .n 17March 1998theFraidentof theCounheld a iurther
meciingwi~htheAgentsofthePiinitinorch IO ascenaiiheirvirw on
the uibxqumi produre: wkms duringthat mecting.Qatar main-
taincdiispodion aaiorheindivisiblnatureofihepmwding on the

mcils: whtreasQUIHs ~uggeslcdihaitheCourtstiould prwribÈ thc
8Jingofa Replyby each d thchriinr wiihinapModexpiring aithe
endof Miirch1999.andststdthalinsuchanevenrueiliywouldbe able
tosnnex ioiuReplya compmhcasii-reportmntniningitdcflniiiwsub
missi- anthequestion ofihe aultatniiof thedocumnts chüllcnged
by Bahrain:and whtwasQatar morcovcr prapsed io submii io thc
Corn. bythe endoTSepiemkr 1998,aninttrinirepoon thüiquestion
io ubhichhrdin wouldbcabIe to mpond inils Rgly: and aiiereas
Biihrainwhiht rtitemtinitprtfmnce for ti sepoircxrminaiionof
ihalqucstioaat aprrliminarystagedidna objecito rheprdum
cnkisapcdby Qutar as citherunrasonable or unjusi:and &mis
Btihrriipainieid punkukir iothe "posiiiw'natureofQatar'spre
prwalihatraniatwim rcpotibtsuhiiied sixmonths More the filing
aT iheReplies;
Whems. by a lelttduted IfMürch 1998.lhcAgent or Qiiiacon-
fird thevie~ dhis Governmen isprcsenwiaiihemceiinghcW thr
day:
Whetm9. by aletiçr dst26 Mu& 1998.theAgeni ofBahmi ion-

Gmeed iht vitwofhi5Gomment. as prescntcatihc mmingheld on
17 March1898 .ndAId additionamaterialinsupprt oitkm:

Havin8 regario thevk ofthe Piirtica.
Ffwx3ûSeptcmbtr 1898ssthetimc-limiforthefilin8bQatarofan
inrerimrcporrto beas compwhensiv and swific aspossible.onthe246 wmw ~at~rr~tto~ANDTERRITORIALQU~OMS (MU).3ûXI98)

qwtion oftbe authenticiof cadiof thedocument stia~le bnged
Bahrnininîh w:
DirerrthesubmissioonfPRtplyon tbcmeritsby-ch oftheMes.
anddecidesthatheReplyofQatarwillmiah itsdetaitaanddehitive
positionontheqwtioa ofthc auibcnticîif=ch ofthedocuments
challemgai yBahminandihai the Eleplof Bahin willcontainifs
okrvations ontheinterimrtporofQatw: andfl-rcs3Mmh 1999as
thetimc-limfortheNi af thesphiings; and

Restrimehe su~~t procbdu*for rurthedecision.

Dooe inEngiisandin French.theEngiiitextbeidgiuthohtative.ai
thePace PiilacTheHam. thii thirtdayor Ma&. wrt thouand
ni= hundmi and ninq-cigiit, in Wm copiesoneof wbich willbe
pM in thedives of theCouriand ik oiheriramitid to the
Ciwcnimen trtheSkaicof QarorandiheCiomrntnt ofthe Statcof
Batiraircspctivcly.

S~~IPJI SthephenM. SCH~BEL,
Prcsideni.

(SipttvfWuardo VALENCIA-OSPINA.
Rcgisiwr.