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Taking Treaties Less Seriously

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 February 2017

Detlev F. Vagts
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A decade ago, my predecessor as Editor in Chief wrote a trenchant critique of what he saw as a tendency of the United States not to give its treaty obligations the weight they deserved. I return to the subject to report that the last ten years have seen an alarming exacerbation of that situation. The mood in the United States about treaty commitments has turned distinctly negative. This has gone so far as to dismay both actual and potential treaty partners of the United States and, in general, all who are concerned about the performance of the country in the realm of international law. Some of the manifestations of this mood can be dismissed as eccentric, at the level of Christian militias’ expressions of anxiety about the prospects of black-painted helicopters dropping United Nations forces into Montana and Idaho. The more worrisome part of it is the prevalence of distaste for treaty commitments in Congress and other influential circles, including the media.

Type
Editorial Comments
Information
American Journal of International Law , Volume 92 , Issue 3 , July 1998 , pp. 458 - 462
Copyright
Copyright © American Society of International Law 1998

References

1 Thomas, M. Franck, Taking Treaties Seriously , 82 AJIL 67 (1988)Google Scholar.

2 This Comment uses the term “treaty” in the same sense as the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, opened for signature May 23, 1969, Art. 2(l)(a), 1155 UNTS 331, without distinguishing between treaties in the sense of Article II of the U.S. Constitution and executive agreements.

3 See Paul, Craig & Gräinnede, Búrca, EC Law: Text, Cases and Materials 112–18 (1995)Google Scholar.

4 Certain expenses of the United Nations (Article 17, paragraph 2, of the Charter), 1962 ICJ Rep. 151 (Advisory Opinion of July 20).

5 112 U.S. 580 (1884).

6 See Richard, L. Doernberg, Legislative Override of Income Tax Treaties: The Branch Profits Tax and Congressional Arrogation of Authority , 42 Tax Law. 173 (1989)Google Scholar. See also Lindsey v. Commissioner, 98 T.G. 672 (1992).

7 South African Airways v. Dole, 817 F.2d 119 (D.C. Cir.), cert, denied, 484 U.S. 896 (1987).

8 974 F.Supp. 302 (S.D.N.Y. 1997).

9 United States v. Palestine Liberation Org., 695 F.Supp. 1456 (S.D.N.Y. 1988).

10 118 S.Ct. 1352 (1998).

11 354 U.S. 1 (1957).

12 Boos v. Barry, 485 U.S. 312 (1988).

13 Colello v. SEC, 908 F.Supp. 738 (CD. Cal. 1995).

14 Parretti v. United States, 112 F.3d 1363 (9th Cir. 1997), summarized in 92 AJIL 91 (1998).

15 Laurence, H. Tribe, Taking Text and Structure Seriously: Reflections on Free-Form Method in Constitutional Interpretation , 108 Harv. L. Rev. 1221 (1995)Google Scholar.

16 In re Surrender of Ntakirutimana, No. L–96–5, 1997 U.S. Dist. lexis 20,714 (S.D. Tex. Dec. 17, 1997); Gouveia v. Vokes, 800 F.Supp. 241 (E.D. Pa. 1992). But see Hilario v. United States, 854 F.Supp. 165 (E.D.N.Y. 1994) (contrary to Gouveia).

17 504 U.S. 655 (1992).

18 509 U.S. 155 (1993).

19 Société Nationale Industrielle Aérospatiale v. United States District Court, 482 U.S. 522 (1987).

20 Vimar Seguros y Reaseguros, S.A. v. The M/V Sky Reefer, 515 U.S. 528 (1995); Mitsubishi Motors Corp. v. Soler Chrysler-Plymouth, Inc., 473 U.S. 614 (1985); Scherk v. Alberto-Culver Co., 417 U.S. 506 (1974).

21 More v. Intelcom Support Servs., 960 F.2d 466 (5th Cir. 1992). See also Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., 467 U.S. 837 (1984).

22 By agreement with the European Union, we assented to deferring enforcement of the rules if Europe would refrain from taking us to the WTO. See 36 ILM 529 (1997).

23 118 S.Ct. 1352 (1998).

24 United States Diplomatic and Consular Staff in Tehran (U.S. v. Iran), 1980 ICJ Rep. 3 (May 24). See commentary in Ted, L. Stein, Contempt, Crisis and the Court: The World Court and the Hostage Rescue Attempt , 76 AJIL 499 (1982)Google Scholar.

25 Military and Paramilitary Activities in and against Nicaragua (Nicar. v. U.S.), Provisional Measures, 1984 ICJ Rep. 169, 186–87 (Order of May 10).

26 See Peter, J. Goldsworthy, Interim Measures of Protection in the International Court of Justice , 68 AJIL 258 (1974)Google Scholar; and Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Bosn.-Herz. v. Yugo.), Provisional Measures, 1993 ICJ Rep. 325, 374, 396 (Order of Sept. 13) (Weeramantry, J., sep. op., & Ajibola, J., sep. op.).

27 Murphy v. Netherland, 116 F.3d 97 (4th Cir. 1997); see William J. Aceves, Case note, 92 AJIL 87 (1998).

28 Aceves, supra note 27, at 87–88 (quoting Murphy v. Netherland, No. 3:95–CV–856, slip op. at 7 (E.D. Va. July 26, 1996)).

29 Id. at 90.

30 For examples, see Jack, L. Goldsmith, Federal Courts, Foreign Affairs and Federalism , 83 Va. L. Rev. 1617, 1637–39 (1997)Google Scholar.

31 Id.

32 Claire, M. Germain, Germain’s Transnational Law Research: A Guide for Attorneys §2.01.2 (1991)Google Scholar. See also 84 ASIL Proc. 451 (1990).

33 Publication is called for by 1 U.S.C. §112a (1994).