On the occasion of the commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, the Inter-American Juridical Committee (CJI) and its Technical Secretariat, the Department of International Law of the Secretariat for Legal Affairs, participated in the events held on May 23 and 24, 2019, organized by the Permanent Missions of Canada and Colombia to the United Nations (UN), in New York.

In attendance at the event at the universal organization’s headquarters was the President of the United Nations General Assembly for the 73rd session, Her Excellency María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés. The event brought together diplomats, legal advisors, academics, and professionals working in the area of treaties, in both the universal organizations and its member states. On that occasion, a rich exchange took place regarding the progressive development of international law, the existing challenges in the area of treaties, and the specificities of the Vienna Convention that made evident its dynamism, flexibility, and global scope, among others.

For their part, the events at the headquarters of the Mission of Canada to the UN brought together specialists from ministries of foreign affairs and international organizations, who debated technical matters such as domestic procedures for entry into force, the legal effects of memoranda of understanding, denunciation and extension of treaties, and succession of States. The OAS legal officer on treaties shared practical experiences of the topics on the agenda, while the representative of the Inter-American Juridical Committee, Dr. Duncan Hollis, participated in a panel discussion on the future of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, during which he was also able to report on the project he is executing as rapporteur for the topic of binding and non-binding treaties. The project aims to clarify the different forms of agreement, taking account of the practice of the OAS member states, in light of responses by member states to a survey (which may be consulted in the following link).

The CJI serves as the OAS’s advisory body on juridical matters and among its purposes it promotes the progressive development and the codification of international law and it studies the possibility of attaining uniformity in legislation in the countries of the hemisphere. The Department of International Law of the Secretariat for Legal Affairs acts as the Technical Secretariat of the Committee.

For further information on this matter, please contact the Department of International Law of the Secretariat for Legal Affairs of the OAS +1 202 370 0743.