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Statement by H.E. Mr. Motohide Yoshikawa
Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations
On Agenda Item 75:
Report of the International Court of Justice
5 November 2015
Mr. President of the General Assembly,
Mr. President of the International Court of Justice,
Honorable Judges of the ICJ,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I would like to start by thanking President Ronny Abraham of the ICJ for his leadership and the comprehensive report on the work of the Court. My gratitude also goes to the Netherlands for hosting a side event on the ICJ with the presence of His Majesty King Willem-Alexander on September 29th.
Mr. President,
The ICJ was born on the same day in the same year as the United Nations in 1945, and began its work the following year. The fact that the ICJ Statute is an integral part of the Charter of the United Nations and that the ICJ is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations is a strong reminder of why the United Nations was established 70 years ago. The United Nations was created to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war and to maintain international peace and stability through peaceful settlement of disputes.
Mr. President,
The ICJ is the only international court which has universal jurisdiction in terms of the number of the State Parties to the Statute of the Court and diversity of subject matters it deals with. All questions of international legal nature can be submitted before it. All Member States of the United Nations are ipso facto Parties to the Statute of the ICJ. From 1947 until today, 161 cases were entered in the General List of the Court and 149 cases were resolved.
These achievements demonstrate that the ICJ has played a constructive role in the field of the peaceful settlement of international disputes for 7 decades. It is not too much to say that the path the ICJ has taken so far constitutes the core of the history of the promotion of the rule of law by the United Nations in international relations. In this context, I wish to repeat the plea of my government that more States should recognize the compulsory jurisdiction of the Court.
On the other hand, international community today enjoys the benefit of remarkable development of various peaceful means of dispute settlements other than the ICJ, such as International Tribunal for Law of the Sea (ITLOS), arbitral tribunals, international investment tribunals and dispute settlement system of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Japan welcomes the current trend that States utilize these peaceful means of dispute settlement depending on specific situations. Japan hopes that the effectiveness of international law will be further strengthened in a coherent manner.
Mr. President,
The rule of law and peaceful settlement of international disputes is a fundamental principle of Japan’s foreign policy. In its bilateral relations with other Member States, Japan explored the possibilities to peacefully settle disputes through the ICJ. Japan not only abides by the decision by the Court concerning the case where Japan was a party, but also respects the jurisprudence of the Court in other cases. This is because we adhere to the principle of the rule of law.
I thank you, Mr. President.
