SIXTH COMMITTEE DISCUSSES EFFECTS OF SANCTIONS ON THIRD STATES AS IT BEGINS CONSIDERING REPORT OF CHARTER COMMITTEE
Press Release
GA/L/3038
SIXTH COMMITTEE DISCUSSES EFFECTS OF SANCTIONS ON THIRD STATES AS IT BEGINS CONSIDERING REPORT OF CHARTER COMMITTEE
19971008 The overall effectiveness of sanctions regimes must be preserved and the Security Council's powers to implement Chapter VII provisions of the Charter should not be undermined, the European Union told the Sixth Committee (Legal) this morning as it began consideration of the report of the Special Committee on the Charter of the United Nations and on the Strengthening of the role of the Organization.The representative of the Netherlands, speaking on behalf of the European Union, said all possible measures and guidelines relating to the effects of sanctions on third States must be judged against that principle. The European Union and its member States had provided substantial economic and humanitarian assistance to States which had suffered the effects of sanctions.
The representative of Bulgaria said the application of sanctions should be accompanied by a strong commitment to provide prompt and effective assistance to affected third States. The burden of specific economic problems created by the implementation of sanctions should be fairly distributed among Member States.
The representative of Namibia said the Security Council had a moral responsibility to alleviate the special economic problems of third States caused by sanctions. Appropriate mechanisms should be established to help them.
The representative of Israel said sanctions had been used too frequently in recent years and that some guidance on their application was needed.
Statements were also made by the representatives of Portugal and India.
Maria Lourdes Ramiro-Lopez (Philippines), Vice-Chairman of the Special Committee, introduced its report.
The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. on Monday, 13 October, to continue its consideration of the report of the Special Committee.
Committee Work Programme
The Sixth Committee (Legal) met this morning to consider the work of the Special Committee on the Charter of the United Nations and on the Strengthening of the Role of the Organization. It has before it the report of the Special Committee as well as a report of the Secretary-General on implementation of Charter provisions concerning assistance to third States affected by the application of sanctions.
The 1997 report of the Special Committee (document A/52/33), which met at Headquarters from 27 January to 7 February, submits recommendations to the Assembly relating to assistance to third States affected by sanctions under Chapter VII and to matters concerning reform of the Organization.
Under the latter item, the Special Committee submits a draft resolution which would have the Assembly decide to amend the first sentence of rule 103 of the rules of procedure of the General Assembly to read: "Each Main Committee shall elect a Chairman, three Vice-Chairmen and a Rapporteur", beginning at the Assembly's fifty-third session. The preambular part of the text explains the change as necessitated by the increasing workload of the Main Committees and as well as a way of ensuring representation of all regional groups in the Committees' bureaux.
Concerning sanctions, the Special Committee invites the Assembly to consider the question of an appropriate organizational framework for addressing further the implementation of Charter provisions relating to assistance to third States affected by the application of sanctions under Chapter VII.
According to the report, during the Special Committee's deliberations on the issue of third States affected by sanctions, some representatives expressed the view that the United Nations had a legal obligation under Article 50 of the Charter to assist third States that have suffered economic or other hardships due to sanctions imposed on another State. The United Nations should establish appropriate mechanisms to deal with the problem, including the provision of financial resources to offset economic losses suffered by the third State, it was noted.
Article 50 of the Charter reads as follows: "If preventive or enforcement measures against any State are taken by the Security Council, any other State, whether a Member of the United Nations or not, which finds itself confronted with special economic problems arising from the carrying out of those measures, shall have the right to consult the Security Council with regard to a solution of those problems."
Some representatives believed the Security Council was the appropriate forum for dealing with that question, the report states. It was also
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suggested that, upon the imposition of sanctions, the Security Council should establish a funding mechanism financed from assessed contributions and supplemented by voluntary contributions to assist third States. Others believed that Article 50 only gave the affected third States the right to consult with the Security Council, but it did not provide a right to compensation.
A revised working paper on the issue of sanctions, submitted by the Russian Federation, questioned the overall effectiveness of sanctions in general. It stressed that sanctions should only be used sparingly and then only when all other diplomatic options have been exhausted. In recent years, it notes, the United Nations had developed a desire to impose sanctions and enforcement measures more broadly and more actively, sometimes in disregard of the political and diplomatic options that remain open.
According to the working paper, sanctions had been employed 116 times during the twentieth century, but there had been only 41 instances where the sanctions brought about the intended objectives. The success rate in the latter instances had been about 50 per cent before the 1980s and about 25 percent after the 1980s.
As an alternative to sanctions, the paper said that consideration should be given to provisional measures under Chapter VII, Article 40 of the Charter. Those would ensure a more flexible response to changes in a situation in the conflict region and reduce the economic problems caused for third States by the implementation of sanctions. Those measures had been employed in the past with very tangible results.
The paper also gives special emphasis to humanitarian concerns of sanctions, asking that sanctions not be imposed if they would create unacceptable civilian suffering. The United Nations was obligated to assess the short- and long-term social and economic and humanitarian consequences of the sanctions before and during their implementation. Measures should be rejected if they would lead to unacceptable suffering of the civilian population.
Another working paper submitted by the Russian Federation concerned a draft declaration on the basic principles and criteria for the work of the United Nations peacekeeping missions and mechanisms for the prevention and settlement of crises and conflicts. According to the paper, those principles would create a stable and clear basis for peacekeeping activities and enhance their legitimacy and efficiency. The draft declaration would also constitute a source of information for governments, national legislatures and the mass media about United Nations operations. According to the paper's sponsor, the Organization is in need of a global instrument containing a compendium of principles and criteria relevant to its activities in the field covering such
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principles as prevention and peaceful settlement of disputes, impartiality, consent of parties and use of force.
In response to the paper, some delegates expressed doubts about the need to develop such an instrument and the feasibility of applying a set of principles to diverse operations. Some delegates said that issues such as operational principles were outside the Special Committee's mandate.
Also under its deliberations on matters related to international peace and security, the Special Committee considered a revised working paper by Cuba, which asked that the Special Committee be directly involved in the restructuring exercise of the United Nations.
According to the paper, the Special Committee should contribute by providing a legal analysis on fundamental issues of reform such as the powers of the Security Council and the General Assembly in respect to the maintenance of international peace; and the working methods of the Security Council in relation to other principle organs of the Organization. Further, the Special Committee should contribute with studies of a legal nature to the implementation of the Charter in regard of the functions and powers of the General Assembly; it should also study the extent to which the General Assembly can recommend measures with regard to a dispute which is being dealt with by the Security Council.
During discussions on the paper, some speakers said the consideration of such topics by the Special Committee would risk being an unnecessary duplication of the work of other committees. Others said the ideas in the paper warranted consideration by the Special Committee.
In matters relating to the peaceful settlement of disputes between States, the Special Committee considered a revised proposal by Sierra Leone on establishing a dispute prevention and early settlement service. Its main function would be to coordinate activities of the United Nations and of relevant regional organizations at the pre-dispute stage or early dispute stage. The service was intended to fill the need for an inexpensive mechanism for prevention activities.
While some delegates proposed the creation of a small, informal working group to study the proposal, others said it was premature to establish such a working group. It was also expressed that there were already an adequate array of mechanisms for the conduct of preventive diplomacy.
Two other working papers on the peaceful settlement of disputes, one submitted by Guatemala and the other by Costa Rica, proposed possible amendments to the Statute of the International Court of Justice to extend its competence to disputes between States and international organizations.
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At its 1997 session, the Special Committee also considered proposals concerning the Trusteeship Council. Some delegations expressed the view that the Trusteeship Council had fulfilled its mandate and should be abolished. Other delegates suggested that the task of amending the Charter to exclude the Trusteeship Council would be too complex and would lead to an imbalance in its current structure. Due to the divergent views in the debate, delegations requested further discussion on the matter. During the deliberations reference was made to a proposal submitted by Malta to convert the Trusteeship Council into a coordinator for the global commons of the common heritage of mankind.
A Secretary-General's report on assistance to third States affected by sanctions (document A/52/308), also before the Committee, proposes that the Department of Economic and Social Affairs should continue its efforts towards developing a possible methodology for assessing the consequences of the implementation of Security Council sanctions on third States. The Department should also convene an ad hoc expert group meeting on the subject in the first half of 1998, with participation of internationally renowned experts and representatives of relevant organizations.
In his report, the Secretary-General proposes the continuation of efforts to establish a set of guidelines on providing the Security Council with better information and early assessment about the actual or potential effects of sanctions on third States that invoke Article 50 of the Charter. Those guidelines would be provided by the Department of Political Affairs in consultation with the Department of Economic and Social Affairs.
On developing a possible methodology for assessing the consequences actually incurred by third States, the Secretary-General invited the World Trade Organization, the World Bank and other relevant bodies to provide him with ideas and suggestions on the subject. The report states that, in principle, there was general agreement that an accurate and transparent impact assessment of sanctions on third States was essential. Thus, his proposal of convening an ad hoc expert group meeting as mentioned above.
The Special Committee, which was established by the Assembly's thirtieth session, meets every year to examine suggestions and proposals regarding the Charter and the strengthening of the role of the United Nations with regard to the maintenance and consolidation of international peace and security, the development of cooperation among all nations and the promotion of the rules of international law.
Also before the Committee is a report of the Secretary-General on the Repertory of Practice of United Nations Organs and the Repertoire of Practice of the Security Council (document A/52/317). The report, prepared pursuant to a 1996 Assembly resolution, states that a number of measures will be taken to facilitate the preparation of the supplements to the Repertory and the
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Repertoire. They include the delegation of responsibility to the Secretariat units concerned with the preparation of the relevant volumes of the Repertory supplements and the simplification of the format. The Secretary-General also recommends the merging of the Repertory and the Repertoire. However, he cautions that even with these measures, the flexibility of the Secretariat units to adapt to new responsibilities, modify their work programme or redirect resources is limited.
Statements
MARIA LOURDES RAMIRO-LOPEZ (Philippines), Vice Chairman of the Special Committee on the Charter and on the Strengthening of the Role of the Organization, introduced the report on behalf of the Chairman. She said that as a result of its deliberations, the Special Committee had invited the General Assembly at its current session to consider the question of an appropriate organizational framework for addressing further the implementation of the application of sanctions under chapter VII of the Charter and the implementation of Assembly resolutions 50/51 and 51/208, taking into account the reports of the Secretary-General as well as the proposals presented and views expressed in the Special Committee.
Regarding the topic of peaceful settlement of disputes between States, she said the Special Committee had discussed a revised proposal submitted by Sierra Leone. In connection with the same subject, Guatemala and Costa Rica had submitted two new proposals envisaging possible amendments to the Statute of the International Court of Justice with a view to extending its competence with respect to contentious matters to disputes between States and international organizations.
Mexico had suggested that the Special Committee could initiate a review of practical ways to strengthen the International Court of Justice and enhance its capacity to contribute to the peaceful settlement of disputes and the maintenance of international peace without amending the Charter or the Statute. The Special Committee had agreed to recommend to the Assembly to invite Member States, States parties to the Statute of the Court and the International Court of Justice, if it so desired, to present their comments and observations on the consequences that the increase in the volume of cases before the Court had on its operation. The recommendation was made on the understanding that it would have no implications for any changes in the Charter or the Statute of the Court. The Special Committee was not able to reach a consensus on issues of coordination with and assistance to the various working groups engaged in the process of revitalization and reform of the Organization, as well as the possible role of the Chairperson of the Charter Committee for those purposes.
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HARRY VERWEIJ (Netherlands), speaking on behalf of the European Union, said it reaffirmed that the arrangements which the Secretary-General had introduced in 1996 on assistance to third States affected by the application of sanctions continued to apply. The European Union noted that no request had been received from the Security Council, nor from its organs or from interested Member States to make those arrangements operational. Apart from those arrangements, the development of a possible methodology for assessing the consequences actually incurred by third States as a result of the implementation of preventive or enforcement measures deserved special attention. The European Union supported the Secretary-General's proposal to convene an ad hoc expert group meeting on the subject in the first half of 1998 to further develop a possible methodology. To ensure a broad-based origin and application of such a methodology, participation of both internationally renowned experts and representatives of the relevant organizations from inside and outside the United Nations system, and in particular the international financial and trade organizations, was essential.
The member States of the European Union had given ample proof of their determination to help minimize the detrimental effects of sanctions on affected States through substantial economic and humanitarian assistance, he said. It recognized the right, as provided by the Charter, of adversely affected States to consult the Security Council with regard to a solution of those problems. At the same time, the European Union wished to underline a practical factor that must be taken into account in dealing with the problem. It was fundamental that the exercise of the powers of the Security Council under Chapter VII provisions for the maintenance of international peace and security was not undermined. The overall effectiveness of sanctions regimes, the primary enforcement measure available under the Charter, must be preserved. All possible measures and guidelines must be judged against that principle.
Member States of the European Union supported the proposal by Portugal to amend article 103 of the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly to provide for the election in all its Main Committees of a Chairman, three Vice- Chairmen and a Rapporteur. The increase in workload of the Main Committees could be better addressed with three instead of two vice-chairmen. Furthermore, all five regional groups would in the future have an officer in a Main Committee.
PAULA VENTURA DE CARVALHO ESCARAMEIA (Portugal) said the Special Committee should take a greater role in the United Nations reform process, specifically by offering recommendations on technical and legal aspects of reform. Coordination in the reform process between the General Assembly and other groups should be thought through; not enough consideration had been given to that topic.
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He said that Portugal supported the idea behind the revised proposal by Sierra Leone for the establishment of a dispute prevention and early settlement service. However, that proposal should be drafted as a legal document, including specific rules for setting up the service, and not merely as a statement. It was hoped that the proposal would be given a new form during the Special Committee's next session.
SATYABRATA PAL (India) said that after 50 years of the application of Security Council sanctions, it was neither legally nor politically tenable to attempt to exclude compensation under Article 50 by adducing a literal interpretation of the term "consult". Having heard all points of view, the Charter Committee should move forward constructively in finding a solution to the problem of third States affected by sanctions.
He said that India welcomed the revised proposal on a dispute prevention and early settlement service. However, it should stress the freedom of States parties to a dispute to select a particular method from the available means of peaceful settlement of disputes. That freedom was a fundamental principle of international law and should not be diluted.
YAEL RONEN (Israel) said she shared the view of the Russian Federation that sanctions had been used too frequently in recent years. However, the question remained as to whether creating set criteria for the use of sanctions would limit their use. As to the proposal to encourage the use of provisional measures instead of sanctions, she said that replacing sanctions with less severe measures might result in even wider use of such measures. That would only create an over-use of provisional measures to replace the over-use of sanctions.
She drew attention to the proposals of Guatemala and Costa Rica to amend the Charter so as to extend the competence of the International Court of Justice to include disputes between States and international organizations. It was questionable whether there was a need for such reform and whether the Court could effectively absorb the extra work. The system already contained checks and balances between various United Nations organs and States, making such reforms unnecessary.
YURI STERK Bulgaria said experience in the application of sanctions regimes had revealed the inadequacy of the existing system of assistance to affected third States. He underlined the importance of implementing Charter provisions on the subject. Application of sanctions should be accompanied by a strong commitment to avoid negative effects on third States, and to provide prompt and effective assistance where necessary. Bulgaria's understanding was that such relief measures should not affect the overall effectiveness of sanctions and the fundamental role and primary responsibility of the Security Council to maintain international peace and security.
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The burden of specific economic problems created by the implementation of sanctions should be fairly distributed among Member States, he said. As in the past, Bulgaria stressed the urgent need for the issue to be addressed in practical terms. General Assembly resolutions 50/51 of 11 December 1995 and 51/208 of 17 December 1996 represented an extremely positive development, and provided a solid base for further work. He underlined the provisions in the resolutions relating to early consultations with the Security Council and the role of the Secretariat in providing advice for mitigating the adverse effects of sanctions on third States, as well as in exploring innovative and practical measures of assistance to those States. He also drew attention to the role of international financial institutions in providing assistance to affected States.
Bulgaria supported the proposal to convene an ad-hoc expert group meeting on the effects of sanctions on those States.
MARTIN ANDJABA (Namibia) said that sanctions should not be used as a primary means of settling international disputes. Other peaceful means should be exhausted before resorting to sanctions. They should not be ruled out, however, when a State was in breach of its obligations under the Charter.
When sanctions were imposed, third States should not be overburdened by that action, he said. The burden of helping those States should be shared by all Member States. The Security Council, which decided on the imposition of sanctions, had a moral responsibility to alleviate the special economic problems of third States which were created by sanctions. Appropriate mechanisms should be established by the United Nations for assistance for such States.
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