Recognizing the ever-increasing importance of treaties as a source of international law and as a means of developing peaceful co-operation among nations, whatever their constitutional and social systems,

Recalling the determination of the peoples of the United Nations to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties can be maintained,

Believing that the codification and progressive development of the law of treaties achieved in the present Convention will promote the purposes of the United Nations set forth in the Charter, namely, the maintenance of international peace and security, the development of friendly relations and the achievement of co-operation among nations,

INTRODUCTION

Scope of the present Convention

1. For the purposes of the present Convention:

b. "ratification", "acceptance", "approval" and "accession" mean in each case the international act so named whereby a State establishes on the international plane its consent to be bound by a treaty;

d. "reservation" means a unilateral statement, however phrased or named, made by a State, when signing, ratifying, accepting, approving or acceding to a treaty, whereby it purports to exclude or to modify the legal effect of certain provisions of the treaty in their application to that State;

f. "contracting State" means a State which has consented to be bound by the treaty, whether or not the treaty has entered into force;

h. "third State" means a State not a party to the treaty;

2. The provisions of paragraph 1 regarding the use of terms in the present Convention are without prejudice to the use of those terms or to the meanings which may be given to them in the internal law of any State.

International agreements not within the scope of the present Convention

The fact that the present Convention does not apply to international agreements concluded between States and other subjects of international law or between such other subjects of international law, or to international agreements not in written form, shall not affect:

a. The legal force of such agreements;

b. The application to them of any of the rules set forth in the present Convention to which they would be subject under international law independently of the Convention;

c. The application of the Convention to the relations of States as between themselves under international agreements to which other subjects of international law are also parties.

Article 4

Non-retroactivity of the present Convention

Without prejudice to the application of any rules set forth in the present Convention to which treaties would be subject under international law independently of the Convention, the Convention applies only to treaties which are concluded by States after the entry into force of the present Convention with regard to such States.

Article 5

Treaties constituting international organizations and treaties adopted within an international organization

PART II

SECTION 1. CONCLUSION OF TREATIES

2. In virtue of their functions and without having to produce full powers, the following are considered as representing their State:

1. The adoption of the text of a treaty takes place by the consent of all the States participating in its drawing up except as provided in paragraph 2.

The text of a treaty is established as authentic and definitive:

b. Failing such procedure, by the signature, signature ad referendum or initialling by the representatives of those States of the text of the treaty or of the Final Act of a conference incorporating the text.

Means of expressing consent to be bound by a treaty

1. The consent of a State to be bound by a treaty is expressed by the signature of its representative when:

b. It is otherwise established that the negotiating States were agreed that signature should have that effect; or

2. For the purposes of paragraph 1:

b. The signature ad referendum of a treaty by a representative, if confirmed by his State, constitutes a full signature of the treaty.

Consent to be bound by a treaty expressed by an exchange of instruments constituting a treaty

a. The instruments provide that their exchange shall have that effect; or

1. The consent of a State to be bound by a treaty is expressed by ratification when:

b. It is otherwise established that the negotiating States were agreed that ratification should be required;

d. The intention of the State to sign the treaty subject to ratification appears from the full powers of its representative or was expressed during the negotiation.

Article 15

The consent of a State to be bound by a treaty is expressed by accession when:

b. It is otherwise established that the negotiating States were agreed that such consent may be expressed by that State by means of accession; or

Unless the treaty otherwise provides, instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession establish the consent of a State to be bound by a treaty upon:

b. Their deposit with the depositary; or

1. Without prejudice to articles 19 to 23, the consent of a State to be bound by part of a treaty is effective only if the treaty so permits or the other contracting States so agree.

A State is obliged to refrain from acts which would defeat the object and purpose of a treaty when:

SECTION 2. RESERVATIONS

1. A reservation expressly authorized by a treaty does not require any subsequent acceptance by the other contracting States unless the treaty so provides.

4. In cases not falling under the preceding paragraphs and unless the treaty otherwise provides:

b. An objection by another contracting State to a reservation does not preclude the entry into force of the treaty as between the objecting and reserving States unless a contrary intention is definitely expressed by the objecting State;

5. For the purposes of paragraphs 2 and 4 and unless the treaty otherwise provides, a reservation is considered to have been accepted by a State if it shall have raised no objection to the reservation by the end of a period of twelve months after it was notified of the reservation or by the date on which it expressed its consent to be bound by the treaty, whichever is later.

Legal effects of reservations and of objections to reservations

a. Modifies for the reserving State in its relations with that other party the provisions of the treaty to which the reservation relates to the extent of the reservation; and

2. The reservation does not modify the provisions of the treaty for the other parties to the treaty inter se.

Article 22

1. Unless the treaty otherwise provides, a reservation may be withdrawn at any time and the consent of a State which has accepted the reservation is not required for its withdrawal.

3. Unless the treaty otherwise provides, or it is otherwise agreed:

b. The withdrawal of an objection to a reservation becomes operative only when notice of it has been received by the State which formulated the reservation.

Procedure regarding reservations

2. If formulated when signing the treaty subject to ratification, acceptance or approval, a reservation must be formally confirmed by the reserving State when expressing its consent to be bound by the treaty. In such a case the reservation shall be considered as having been made on the date of its confirmation.

4. The withdrawal of a reservation or of an objection to a reservation must be formulated in writing.

Entry into force

2. Failing any such provision or agreement, a treaty enters into force as soon as consent to be bound by the treaty has been established for all the negotiating States.

4. The provisions of a treaty regulating the authentication of its text, the establishment of the consent of States to be bound by the treaty, the manner or date of its entry into force, reservations, the functions of the depositary and other matters arising necessarily before the entry into force of the treaty apply from the time of the adoption of its text.

Provisional application

a. The treaty itself so provides; or

2. Unless the treaty otherwise provides or the negotiating States have otherwise agreed, the provisional application of a treaty or a part of a treaty with respect to a State shall be terminated if that State notifies the other States between which the treaty is being applied provisionally of its intention not to become a party to the treaty.

OBSERVANCE, APPLICATION AND INTERPRETATION OF TREATIES

Article 26

Every treaty in force is binding upon the parties to it and must be performed by them in good faith.

Internal law and observance of treaties

SECTION 2. APPLICATION OF TREATIES

Non-retroactivity of treaties

Unless a different intention appears from the treaty or is otherwise established, a treaty is binding upon each party in respect of its entire territory.

Application of successive treaties relating to the same subject-matter

2. When a treaty specifies that it is subject to, or that it is not to be considered as incompatible with, an earlier or later treaty, the provisions of that other treaty prevail.

4. When the parties to the later treaty do not include all the parties to the earlier one:

b. As between a State party to both treaties and a State party to only one of the treaties, the treaty to which both States are parties governs their mutual rights and obligations.

SECTION 3. INTERPRETATION OF TREATIES

General rule of interpretation

2. The context for the purpose of the interpretation of a treaty shall comprise, in addition to the text, including its preamble and annexes:

b. Any instrument which was made by one or more parties in connexion with the conclusion of the treaty and accepted by the other parties as an instrument related to the treaty.

a. Any subsequent agreement between the parties regarding the interpretation of the treaty or the application of its provisions;

c. Any relevant rules of international law applicable in the relations between the parties.

Recourse may be had to supplementary means of interpretation, including the preparatory work of the treaty and the circumstances of its conclusion, in order to confirm the meaning resulting from the application of article 31, or to determine the meaning when the interpretation according to article 31:

b. Leads to a result which is manifestly absurd or unreasonable.

Interpretation of treaties authenticated in two or more languages

2. A version of the treaty in a language other than one of those in which the text was authenticated shall be considered an authentic text only if the treaty so provides or the parties so agree.

4. Except where a particular text prevails in accordance with paragraph 1, when a comparison of the authentic texts discloses a difference of meaning which the application of articles 31 and 32 does not remove, the meaning which best reconciles the texts, having regard to the object and purpose of the treaty, shall be adopted.

A treaty does not create either obligations or rights for a third State without its consent.

Treaties providing for obligations for third States

1. A right arises for a third State from a provision of a treaty if the parties to the treaty intend the provision to accord that right either to the third State, or to a group of States to which it belongs, or to all States, and the third State assents thereto. Its assent shall be presumed so long as the contrary is not indicated, unless the treaty otherwise provides.

1. When an obligation has arisen for a third State in conformity with article 35, the obligation may be revoked or modified only with the consent of the parties to the treaty and of the third State, unless it is established that they had otherwise agreed.

Nothing in articles 34 to 37 precludes a rule set forth in a treaty from becoming binding upon a third State as a customary rule of international law, recognized as such.

AMENDMENT AND MODIFICATION OF TREATIES

A treaty may be amended by agreement between the parties. The rules laid down in Part II apply to such an agreement except in so far as the treaty may otherwise provide.

Amendment of multilateral treaties

b. The negotiation and conclusion of any agreement for the amendment of the treaty.

4. The amending agreement does not bind any State already a party to the treaty which does not become a party to the amending agreement; article 30, paragraph 4(b), applies in relation to such State.

a. Be considered as a party to the treaty as amended; and

1. Two or more of the parties to a multilateral treaty may conclude an agreement to modify the treaty as between themselves alone if:

b. The modification in question is not prohibited by the treaty and:

2. Unless in a case falling under paragraph 1(a) the treaty otherwise provides, the parties in question shall notify the other parties of their intention to conclude the agreement and of the modification to the treaty for which it provides.

PART V

SECTION 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS

Validity and continuance in force of treaties

2. The termination of a treaty, its denunciation or the withdrawal of a party, may take place only as a result of the application of the provisions of the treaty or of the present Convention. The same rule applies to suspension of the operation of a treaty.

Obligations imposed by international law independently of a treaty

1. A right of a party, provided for in a treaty or arising under article 56, to denounce, withdraw from or suspend the operation of the treaty may be exercised only with respect to the whole treaty unless the treaty otherwise provides or the parties otherwise agree.

3. If the ground relates solely to particular clauses, it may be invoked only with respect to those clauses where:

b. It appears from the treaty or is otherwise established that acceptance of those clauses was not an essential basis of the consent of the other party or parties to be bound by the treaty as a whole; and

4. In cases falling under articles 49 and 50 the State entitled to invoke the fraud or corruption may do so with respect either to the whole treaty or, subject to paragraph 3, to the particular clauses alone.

a. It shall have expressly agreed that the treaty is valid or remains in force or continues in operation, as the case may be; or

SECTION 2. INVALIDITY OF TREATIES

Provisions of internal law regarding competence to conclude treaties

2. A violation is manifest if it would be objectively evident to any State conducting itself in the matter in accordance with normal practice and in good faith.

Specific restrictions on authority to express the consent of a State

Error

2. Paragraph 1 shall not apply if the State in question contributed by its own conduct to the error or if the circumstances were such as to put that State on notice of a possible error.

If a State has been induced to conclude a treaty by the fraudulent conduct of another negotiating State, the State may invoke the fraud as invalidating its consent to be bound by the treaty.

Corruption of a representative of a State

The expression of a State's consent to be bound by a treaty which has been procured by the coercion of its representative through acts or threats directed against him shall be without any legal effect.

Coercion of a State by the threat or use of force

A treaty is void if, at the time of its conclusion, it conflicts with a peremptory norm of general international law. For the purposes of the present Convention, a peremptory norm of general international law is a norm accepted and recognized by the international community of States as a whole as a norm from which no derogation is permitted and which can be modified only by a subsequent norm of general international law having the same character.

The termination of a treaty or the withdrawal of a party may take place:

b. At any time by consent of all the parties after consultation with the other contracting States.

Reduction of the parties to a multilateral treaty below the number necessary for its entry into force

1. A treaty which contains no provision regarding its termination and which does not provide for denunciation or withdrawal is not subject to denunciation or withdrawal unless:

b. A right of denunciation or withdrawal may be implied by the nature of the treaty.

The operation of a treaty in regard to all the parties or to a particular party may be suspended:

b. At any time by consent of all the parties after consultation with the other contracting States.

Suspension of the operation of a multilateral treaty by agreement between certain of the parties only

a. The possibility of such a suspension is provided for by the treaty; or

i. Does not affect the enjoyment by the other parties of their rights under the treaty or the performance of their obligations;

2. Unless in a case falling under paragraph 1(a) the treaty otherwise provides, the parties in question shall notify the other parties of their intention to conclude the agreement and of those provisions of the treaty the operation of which they intend to suspend.

Termination or suspension of the operation of a treaty implied by conclusion of a later treaty

a. It appears from the later treaty or is otherwise established that the parties intended that the matter should be governed by that treaty; or

2. The earlier treaty shall be considered as only suspended in operation if it appears from the later treaty or is otherwise established that such was the intention of the parties.

Termination or suspension of the operation of a treaty as a consequence of its breach

2. A material breach of a multilateral treaty by one of the parties entitles:

i. In the relations between themselves and the defaulting State, or

b. A party specially affected by the breach to invoke it as a ground for suspending the operation of the treaty in whole or in part in the relations between itself and the defaulting State;

3. A material breach of a treaty, for the purposes of this article, consists in:

b. The violation of a provision essential to the accomplishment of the object or purpose of the treaty.

5. Paragraphs 1 to 3 do not apply to provisions relating to the protection of the human person contained in treaties of a humanitarian character, in particular to provisions prohibiting any form of reprisals against persons protected by such treaties.

Supervening impossibility of performance

2. Impossibility of performance may not be invoked by a party as a ground for terminating, withdrawing from or suspending the operation of a treaty if the impossibility is the result of a breach by that party either of an obligation under the treaty or of any other international obligation owed to any other party to the treaty.

Fundamental change of circumstances

a. The existence of those circumstances constituted an essential basis of the consent of the parties to be bound by the treaty; and

2. A fundamental change of circumstances may not be invoked as a ground for terminating or withdrawing from a treaty:

b. If the fundamental change is the result of a breach by the party invoking it either of an obligation under the treaty or of any other international obligation owed to any other party to the treaty.

The severance of diplomatic or consular relations between parties to a treaty does not affect the legal relations established between them by the treaty except in so far as the existence of diplomatic or consular relations is indispensable for the application of the treaty.

Emergence of a new peremptory norm of general international law "jus cogens"

SECTION 4. PROCEDURE

Procedure to be followed with respect to invalidity, termination, withdrawal from or suspension of the operation of a treaty

2. If, after the expiry of a period which, except in cases of special urgency, shall not be less than three months after the receipt of the notification, no party has raised any objection, the party making the notification may carry out in the manner provided in article 67 the measure which it has proposed.

4. Nothing in the foregoing paragraphs shall affect the rights or obligations of the parties under any provisions in force binding the parties with regard to the settlement of disputes.

If, under paragraph 3 of article 65, no solution has been reached within a period of twelve months following the date on which the objection was raised, the following procedures shall be followed:

b. Any one of the parties to a dispute concerning the application or the interpretation of any of the other articles in Part V of the present Convention may set in motion the procedure specified in the Annex to the Convention by submitting a request to that effect to the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Instruments for declaring invalid, terminating, withdrawing from or suspending the operation of a treaty

SECTION 5. CONSEQUENCES OF THE INVALIDITY, TERMINATION OR SUSPENSION OF THE OPERATION OF A TREATY

1. A treaty the invalidity of which is established under the present Convention is void. The provisions of a void treaty have no legal force.

a. Each party may require any other party to establish as far as possible in their mutual relations the position that would have existed if the acts had not been performed;

3. In cases falling under articles 49, 50, 51 or 52, paragraph 2 does not apply with respect to the party to which the fraud, the act of corruption or the coercion is imputable.

1. Unless the treaty otherwise provides or the parties otherwise agree, the termination of a treaty under its provisions or in accordance with the present Convention:

b. Does not affect any right, obligation or legal situation of the parties created through the execution of the treaty prior to its termination.

a. Eliminate as far as possible the consequences of any act performed in reliance on any provision which conflicts with the peremptory norm of general international law; and

2. In the case of a treaty which becomes void and terminates under article 64, the termination of the treaty:

b. Does not affect any right, obligation or legal situation of the parties created through the execution of the treaty prior to its termination; provided that those rights, obligations or situations may thereafter be maintained only to the extent that their maintenance is not in itself in conflict with the new peremptory norm of general international law.

Consequences of the suspension of the operation of a treaty

a. Releases the parties between which the operation of the treaty is suspended from the obligation to perform the treaty in their mutual relations during the period of the suspension;

2. During the period of the suspension the parties shall refrain from acts tending to obstruct the resumption of the operation of the treaty.

MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Cases of State succession, State responsibility and outbreak of hostilities

The severance or absence of diplomatic or consular relations between two or more States does not prevent the conclusion of treaties between those States. The conclusion of a treaty does not in itself affect the situation in regard to diplomatic or consular relations.

Case of an aggressor State

PART VII

1. The designation of the depositary of a treaty may be made by the negotiating States, either in the treaty itself or in some other manner. The depositary may be one or more States, an international organization or the chief administrative officer of the organization.

1. The functions of a depositary, unless otherwise provided in the treaty or agreed by the contracting States, comprise in particular:

b. Preparing certified copies of the original text and preparing any further text of the treaty in such additional languages as may be required by the treaty and transmitting them to the parties and to the States entitled to become parties to the treaty;

d. Examining whether the signature or any instrument, notification or communication relating to the treaty is in due and proper form and, if need be, bringing the matter to the attention of the State in question;

f. Informing the States entitled to become parties to the treaty when the number of signatures or of instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession required for the entry into force of the treaty has been received or deposited;

h. Performing the functions specified in other provisions of the present Convention.

Except as the treaty or the present Convention otherwise provide, any notification or communication to be made by any State under the present Convention shall:

b. Be considered as having been made by the State in question only upon its receipt by the State to which it was transmitted or, as the case may be, upon its receipt by the depositary;

1. Where, after the authentication of the text of a treaty, the signatory States and the contracting States are agreed that it contains an error, the error shall, unless they decide upon some other means of correction, be corrected:

b. By executing or exchanging an instrument or instruments setting out the correction which it has been agreed to make; or

2. Where the treaty is one for which there is a depositary, the latter shall notify the signatory States and the contracting States of the error and of the proposal to correct it and shall specify an appropriate time-limit within which objection to the proposed correction may be raised. If, on the expiry of the time-limit:

b. An objection has been raised, the depositary shall communicate the objection to the signatory States and to the contracting States.

4. The corrected text replaces the defective text ab initio, unless the signatory States and the contracting States otherwise decide.

6. Where an error is discovered in a certified copy of a treaty, the depositary shall execute a procès-verbal specifying the rectification and communicate a copy of it to the signatory States and to the contracting States.

Registration and publication of treaties

2. The designation of a depositary shall constitute authorization for it to perform the acts specified in the preceding paragraph.

FINAL PROVISIONS

Signature

The present Convention is subject to ratification. The instruments of ratification shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Accession

1. The present Convention shall enter into force on the thirtieth day following the date of deposit of the thirty-fifth instrument of ratification or accession.

The original of the present Convention, of which the Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish texts are equally authentic, shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

DONE at Vienna, this twenty-third day of May, one thousand nine hundred and sixty-nine. . . .

1. A list of conciliators consisting of qualified jurists shall be drawn up and maintained by the Secretary-General of the United Nations. To this end, every State which is a Member of the United Nations or a party to the present Convention shall be invited to nominate two conciliators, and the names of the persons so nominated shall constitute the list. The term of a conciliator, including that of any conciliator nominated to fill a casual vacancy, shall be five years and may be renewed. A conciliator whose term expires shall continue to fulfil any function for which he shall have been chosen under the following paragraph.

The State or States constituting one of the parties to the dispute shall appoint:

b. One conciliator not of the nationality of that State or of any of those States, who shall be chosen from the list.

The four conciliators shall, within sixty days following the date of the last of their own appointments, appoint a fifth conciliator chosen from the list, who shall be chairman.

Any vacancy shall be filled in the manner prescribed for the initial appointment.

4. The Commission may draw the attention of the parties to the dispute to any measures which might facilitate an amicable settlement.

6. The Commission shall report within twelve months of its constitution. Its report shall be deposited with the Secretary-General and transmitted to the parties to the dispute. The report of the Commission, including any conclusions stated therein regarding the facts or questions of law, shall not be binding upon the parties and it shall have no other character than that of recommendations submitted for the consideration of the parties in order to facilitate an amicable settlement of the dispute.