SENSE OF CONGRESS CONCERNING AN ENHANCED ROLE FOR THE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE IN RESOLUTION OF INTERNATIONAL DISPUTES.

SEC. 411. SENSE OF CONGRESS CONCERNING AN ENHANCED ROLE FOR THE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE IN RESOLUTION OF INTERNATIONAL DISPUTES. (a) Findings.— The Congress makes the following findings: (1) In 1945, the United States supported the establishment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to provide for the orderly resolution of disputes among nations under the rule of law. (2) The United States, pursuant to Article 93 of the Charter of the United Nations, is also a party to the Statute of the Inter-104 STAT. 69national Court of Justice which provides in Article 36(1) that the International Court of Justice will have jurisdiction over “all cases which the parties refer to it and all matters specially provided for in the Charter of the United Nations or in treaties and conventions in force”. (3) In August 1946, the United States, pursuant to Senate advice and consent (61 Stat. 1218), voluntarily accepted the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice in other international disputes under Article 36(2) of the Statute of the International Court of Justice, on certain conditions, and maintained such recognition for four decades from 1946 to 1986 when United States acceptance was terminated. (4) The United States has utilized the International Court of Justice on numerous occasions to resolve disputes with other nations. (5) In April 1984, the United States notified the Secretary General of the United Nations that the United States was suspending for two years its acceptance of the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice in cases relating to Central America. (6) In 1985, the United States announced it was terminating, in whole, United States acceptance (effective April 1, 1986) of the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice. (7) The Soviet Union, as a member of the United Nations, is also a party to the Statute of the International Court of Justice and is thus bound by Article 36(1). (8) The Soviet Union, unlike the United States, has not since the inception of the International Court of Justice voluntarily accepted the compulsory jurisdiction of the ICJ under Article 36(2) or taken any other case voluntarily to the court. (9) Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, in his address to the United Nations in December of 1988 said: “We believe that the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice at the Hague as regards the interpretation and implementation of agreements on human rights should be binding on all states.”. (10) The Legal Adviser of the State Department is holding discussions with Soviet officials and representatives of other permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and other states to determine whether and how the International Court of Justice might be used for the peaceful settlement of international disputes through procedures that assure fairness and the protection of legitimate national interests. (b) Sense of Congress.— The Congress commends and strongly supports efforts by the United States to broaden, where appropriate, the compulsory jurisdiction and enhance the effectiveness of the International Court of Justice.