Ministry Statements & Speeches:
Madam Chair,
I am pleased to speak today on behalf of Australia and Canada as well as my own country, New Zealand.
We welcome this Committee’s ongoing work on strengthening and promoting the international treaty framework. We were pleased to see the work of this Committee result in the fifth amendment to the Regulations that give effect to Article 102 of the UN Charter, which is important for maintaining the integrity of this framework. Today, we will focus our comments on the subtopic of “Best practices of depositaries of multilateral treaties”, as adopted by the resolution of this Committee in 2021.
We believe that good depositary practice serves as an important custodian of the international treaty framework and, in turn, the rules-based international order. The functions of the depositary, especially pursuant to multilateral treaties, are central to ensuring the transparency and accessibility of international law.
Our delegations would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude to the United Nations Office for Legal Affairs for its work in discharging the Secretary General’s depositary functions, which has significantly informed best depositary practice. We welcome their continued stewardship of this function and helpful assistance to depositaries undertaking their designated duties to ensure that best practice in treaty making and maintenance is preserved for decades to come.
We note that Articles 76 to 80 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties provide the foundation of functions of depositaries to treaties. We wish to underline the integral role of the Vienna Convention in providing certainty and stability in international treaty practice, including with regard to depositary practice. These provisions constitute the starting point for best depositary practice.
We note in particular the need for every depository to continue to be guided by the duty within Article 76(2) of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties to act impartially in discharging its obligations. This is imperative to ensuring the efficient operation and administration of all multilateral treaties.
We speak today from our own experience and practice. New Zealand serves as the depositary for 11 multilateral treaties, Australia serves as the depositary for 8 treaties and Canada 9.
In discharging depositary functions, our delegations note the fundamental importance of efficient communication and publication. The prompt provision of depositary notifications to all treaty parties serves to maintain and promote transparency and accuracy in the administration of multilateral treaties.
The depositary’s responsibility of registering and publishing each treaty bolsters the accessibility of international law, by contributing to a comprehensive and central source of international treaties that can be readily accessed. Ensuring that all relevant information on the treaty is available online further reduces barriers to access.
Pursuing the dual objectives of accessibility and transparency should be at the heart of our discussions surrounding the best practice of depositaries. We reiterate our support for continuing our collective effort to promote and strengthen the international treaty framework, and extend our gratitude to all states and organisations which take on the important responsibility of being a treaty depositary.
Thank you Madam Chair.