U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 

1

89–118

" ! SENATE

107TH CONGRESS

1st Session

TREATY DOC.

2001

107–1

CONVENTION ON SAFETY OF U.N. AND ASSOCIATED

PERSONNEL

MESSAGE

FROM

THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

TRANSMITTING

CONVENTION ON THE SAFETY OF UNITED NATIONS AND ASSOCIATED PERSONNEL, SUBJECT TO AN UNDERSTANDING AND A

RESERVATION, ADOPTED BY THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL

ASSEMBLY BY CONSENSUS ON DECEMBER 9, 1994, AND SIGNED

ON BEHALF OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ON DECEMBER 19, 1994.

JANUARY 3, 2001.—Convention was read the first time, and together with

the accompanying papers, referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations and ordered to be printed for the use of the Senate

(III)

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

THE WHITE HOUSE, January 3, 2001.

To the Senate of the United States:

I transmit herewith, with a view to receiving the advice and con- sent of the Senate to ratification, subject to an understanding and

a reservation, the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and

Associated Personnel adopted by the United Nations General Assembly by consensus on December 9, 1994, and signed on behalf of

the United States of America on December 19, 1994. The report of

the Department of State with respect to the Convention is also

transmitted for the information of the Senate.

Military peacekeepers, civilian police, and others associated with United Nations operations are often subject to attack by persons

who perceive political benefits from directing violence against

United Nations operations. The world has witnessed a serious escalation of such attacks, resulting in numerous deaths and casualties.

This Convention is designed to provide a measure of deterrence

against these attacks, by creating a regime of universal criminal jurisdiction for offenses of this type. Specifically, the Convention creates a legal mechanism that requires submission for prosecution or

extradition of persons alleged to have committed attacks and other

offenses listed under the Convention against United Nations and

associated personnel. This Convention provides a direct benefit to United States Armed

Forces and to U.S. civilians participating in peacekeeping activities

by including within its coverage a number of types of operations

pursuant to United Nations mandates in which the United States

and U.S. military and civilians have participated in the past. If the

United States were to participate in operations under similar conditions in the future, its forces and civilians would receive the benefits created by this instrument. The Convention covers not only

forces under U.N. command, but associated forces under national

command or multinational forces present pursuant to a United Nations mandate. In situations such as we have seen in Somalia, the

former Yugoslavia, and Haiti, certain attacks on these associated

forces would now be recognized as criminal acts, subjecting the

attackers to prosecution in or extradition by any State that is a

party to the Convention. As a result, the international community

has taken a significant practical step to redress these incidents. In

doing so, we recognize the fact that attacks on peacekeepers who

represent the international community are violations of law and

cannot be condoned.

By creating obligations and procedures that increase the likelihood of prosecution of those who attack peacekeeping personnel,

this Convention fulfills an important objective under my Directive

for Reforming Multilateral Peace Operations of May 1994, which

IV

directs that the United States seek additional legal protections for

United States peacekeeping personnel.

The recommended legislation, necessary to implement the Convention, will be submitted to the Congress separately.

I recommend that the Senate give early and favorable consideration to this Convention subject to the understanding and reservation that are described in the accompanying report of the Department of State, and give its advice and consent to ratification.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON.

(V)

LETTER OF SUBMITTAL

DEPARTMENT OF STATE,

Washington, November 8, 2000.

The PRESIDENT, The White House.

THE PRESIDENT: I have the honor to submit to you, with a view

to its transmission to the Senate for advice and consent to ratification, subject to an understanding and a reservation, the Convention

on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel, adopted

by the United Nations General Assembly by consensus on December 9, 1994, and signed on behalf of the United States of America

on December 19, 1994.

Pursuant to proposals by New Zealand and Ukraine, the United

Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 48/37 on December

9, 1993, which established an ad hoc committee, open to all States,

to draft an international convention dealing with the safety and security of United Nations and associated personnel. During 1994,

the ad hoc committee made substantial progress, and remaining

issues were resolved by a working group of the Sixth (Legal) Committee of the General Assembly. The Convention was adopted by

consensus by the full Sixth Committee on November 16, 1994, and

by the General Assembly on December 9, 1994. It was opened for

signature at the U.N. Headquarters on December 15, 1994. The

Convention entered into force on January 15, 1999. The Convention was drafted and negotiated on an urgent basis

because of the increasing number of attacks on peacekeeping personnel acting pursuant to U.N. mandates, and the lack of effective

legal remedies to address such attacks. Although persons who attack peacekeeping personnel usually violate the domestic law of the

State in which the attack occurs, host States for U.N. operations

often do not have the capacity or will to investigate and prosecute

these individuals. By creating a regime of universal jurisdiction

over such attacks, the Convention makes it more likely that persons who commit these grave offenses will be punished. The Convention addresses attacks against United Nations and

associated personnel, including certain multinational and national

forces when they are engaged, deployed or assigned to carry out activities in support of the fulfillment of the mandate of a United Nations operation. The Convention does not cover those enforcement

actions under Chapter VII of the U.N. Charter that involve international armed conflict in which the United Nations or associated

personnel are engaged as combatants. The Convention creates a legal mechanism which requires submission for prosecution or extradition of persons alleged to have

committed attacks and other offenses against United Nations and

VI

associated personnel as specified under the Convention. This mechanism is essentially the same as that used in a number of other

Conventions involving crimes often committed by terrorists—including the Hague Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Seizure of Aircraft of 1970, the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Civil Aviation of 1971, the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Internationally Protected Persons, including Diplomatic Agents of 1973

and the International Convention Against the Taking of Hostages

of 1979. The United States is a party to each of these conventions.

Many of the provisions of the new Convention are modeled on the

provisions of these other conventions.

The major features of the Convention may be summarized as follows:

Definitions and Scope of Application

In terms of its scope, Article 2(1) of the Convention provides that

it applies in respect of ‘‘United Nations and associated personnel’’

and ‘‘United Nations operations’’ as those terms are defined in Article 1. Article 1 defines ‘‘United Nations personnel’’ as persons engaged or deployed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations

as members of the military, police or civilian components of a

United Nations operation, as well as other officials and experts on

mission of the United Nations or its specialized agencies or the

International Atomic Energy Agency, who are present in an official

capacity in the area where a United Nations operation is being conducted. ‘‘Associated personnel’’ is defined as persons assigned by a

Government or an intergovernmental organization with the agreement of the competent organ of the United Nations, persons engaged by the Secretary-General of the United Nations or by a specialized agency or by the International Atomic Energy Agency, and

persons deployed by a humanitarian non-governmental organization or agency under an agreement with the Secretary-General of

the United Nations or with a specialized agency or with the International Atomic Energy Agency. To be protected under the Convention, both U.N. and associated personnel must be assigned, engaged or deployed to carry out activities in support of the fulfillment of the mandate of a United Nations operation.

‘‘United Nations operation’’ is defined under Article 1 as an operation established by the competent organ of the United Nations in

accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and conducted

under United Nations authority and control (i) where the operation

is for the purpose of maintaining or restoring international peace

and security, or (ii) where the Security Council or the General Assembly has declared, for the purposes of this Convention, that

there exists an exceptional risk to the safety of the personnel participating in the operation.

Under these definitions, therefore, the Convention applies to

United Nations personnel engaged or deployed to carry out activities in support of the fulfillment of a U.N. mandate and who act

under the authority and control of the United Nations. These individuals are commonly known as ‘‘blue-hats.’’ By virtue of its application to ‘‘associated personnel,’’ which can include multinational

and national forces, the Convention covers not only these U.N.

VII

‘‘blue-hatted’’ forces, but also forces and certain other personnel associated with a U.N. operation if they are assigned, engaged or deployed to carry out activities in support of the fulfillment of the

mandate of the United Nations. Thus, the Convention should be

read to cover personnel engaged in activities in support of the mandate of a U.N. operation, even in the absence of ‘‘blue-hatted’’ personnel. The United States intends to implement the Convention in

a manner that will cover all those who assist in the maintenance

or restoration of international peace and security pursuant to a

U.N. mandate, and who are not excluded by virtue of Article 2(2)

of the Convention. To ensure that this is clear to our treaty partners, I recommend that the following understanding to Article 1(b)

be included in the United States instrument of ratification:

The United States understands that associated personnel within the meaning of Article 1(b) includes all persons assigned, engaged or deployed to carry out activities

in support of the fulfillment of the mandate of a United

Nations operation, with respect to whom the application of

the Convention has not been excluded pursuant to Article

2(2), without regard to the presence or absence of United

Nations personnel engaged or deployed as members of a

military component of a United Nations operation.

As noted above, a United Nations operation is an operation established by the competent organ of the United Nations and conducted under U.N. authority and control. An operation under U.N.

authority and control might include, for example, one in which the

operation’s mandate is derived from Security Council action and includes detailed authority for national or multinational forces to

take actions in fulfillment of a U.N. mandate. Although a determination of whether an offense is prosecutable under the Convention depends on a careful review of the facts and circumstances of

the particular case, as a general matter NATO assistance to the

U.N. Protection Force (UNPROFOR) in the former Yugoslavia,

United States assistance under the Unified Task Force in Somalia

(UNITAF), and the participation of the United States and others

in the Multinational Force assisting the United Nations Mission in

Haiti (UNMIH) would have rendered the relevant U.S. forces ‘‘associated personnel’’ within the meaning of the Convention had the

Convention been in force at the relevant time. It also would cover

operations in which the United States has been involved since the

Convention came into force, for example U.N. operations in Bosnia

and Kosovo.

Pursuant to Article 2(2), the Convention does not apply to a U.N.

operation authorized by the Security Council as an enforcement action under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations in

which any personnel are engaged as combatants against organized

armed forces and to which the law of international armed conflict

applies. Thus, when personnel of a United Nations operation are

engaged as combatants (like the conflict with Iraq in ‘‘Desert

Storm’’), they are covered by the laws of armed conflict, including

the grave breaches provisions of the Geneva Conventions of 1949.

Article 2(2)’ phrases ‘‘to which the law of international armed conflict applies,’’ refers to the standard found in common article 2 of

VIII

the 1949 Geneva Conventions and, thereby making it clear that

this Convention does not apply to situations covered by common article 2 of the Geneva Conventions. The United States specifically

sought to achieve just this type of dividing line. As a result, in enforcement actions under Chapter VII of the U.N. Charter where

any of the personnel are combatants in a conflict ‘‘to which the law

of international armed conflict applies’’, the law of armed conflict

will define the responsibilities and relationships between and

among the parties to the conflict. When common article 2 of the

Geneva Convention does not apply, for example in situations where

personnel of a United Nations operation are not engaged as combatants or are deployed in situations involving internal armed conflicts, this Convention applies and serves to criminalize attacks on

United Nations and associated personnel, their means of transportation, equipment and premises. In addition the Convention criminalizes attempts or threats to do any of the above, the ordering or

organizing of others to commit such attacks, as well as participation as an accomplice in any attack or attempt.

The Convention’s Article 2(2) also makes clear that the law of

international armed conflict, rather than the Convention, applies if

any personnel are engaged as combatants in the conflict described

in that Article pursuant to Chapter VII. Thus, only when any of

the U.N. or associated personnel participating in an operation are

engaged as combatants, does this Convention cease to apply for all

such personnel. As a result, it is easier for participants in an operation to know under which legal protective regime they fall in a

given situation, and to conform their conduct accordingly.

Identification

Pursuant to Article 3, military and police components of U.N. operations, and their vehicles, vessels and aircraft are to bear distinctive identification. Other personnel, vehicles, vessels and aircraft

involved in U.N. operations are to be appropriately identified unless otherwise decided by the U.N. Secretary-General. All personnel

are to carry appropriate identification documents. The former requirement is analogous to the Geneva Convention principle that

combatants are identified by a fixed distinctive sign recognizable at

a distance. It is sufficient if military and civilian components operate vessels, vehicles and aircraft bearing national markings, wear

national uniforms and carry identification issued by their national

military authorities. Although identification is desirable, it is not

a prerequisite for protection under the Convention.

Argeements on the Status of the Operation

Under Article 4, the host State and the United Nations are required to conclude, as soon as possible, an agreement on the status

of the United Nations operation and personnel, including provisions on privileges and immunities for military and police components of the operation. Having status of forces agreements in place

prior to, or as soon as possible after, deployment ensures that there

is a common understanding of the status of the sending States’

forces in the receiving State.

IX

Transit

Article 5 makes clear that a transit State must facilitate the

unimpeded transit of United Nations and associated personnel and

their equipment to and from the host State in whose territory a

U.N. operation is conducted.

Respect for Laws and Regulations

Article 6 provides that United Nations and associated personnel

shall respect the laws and regulations of the host State and transit

State, and refrain from any action or activity incompatible with the

impartial nature of their duties. This obligation is without prejudice to the privileges and immunities such personnel may enjoy or

to the requirements of their duties, and thus local law cannot be

interposed to prevent accomplishment of the operation’s mission.

Duty to Ensure Safety and Security of Personnel

Article 7 provides that United Nations and associated personnel,

their equipment and premises must not be made the object of attack or of any action that prevents them from discharging their

mandate. In addition, States Parties must take all appropriate

measures to ensure the safety and security of such personnel, and

must take all appropriate steps to protect such personnel who are

deployed in their territory from crimes set out in Article 9. States

Parties must cooperate with the United Nations and other States

Parties, as appropriate, in the implementation of the Convention,

particularly in any case where the host State is unable itself to

take the required measures.

Duty with Respect to Captured or Detained Personnel

Article 8 establishes that except as provided in an applicable status-of-forces agreement, if United Nations or associated personnel

are captured or detained in the course of the performance of their

duties and their identification has been established, they must not

be subjected to interrogation and they must be promptly released

and returned to the United Nations or other appropriate authorities. If U.N. or associated personnel are captured and detained they

must be treated in accordance with universally recognized standards of human rights and the principles and spirit of the Geneva

Conventions of 1949. These principles reflect an important and appropriate response to the increasingly common problem of capture

or detention of U.N. and associated personnel by local entities.

Such personnel are entitled to respect and protection as a result of

their status as representatives of the world community. Moreover,

the Convention makes it clear that detention of these personnel

until the conclusion of the conflict is impermissible. The rule that

may be followed under the Geneva Conventions in a situation involving international armed conflict (i.e., a person may be detained

until the end of the conflict) is not applicable to persons covered by

this Convention.

Crimes and Jurisdiction

Article 9 requires each State Party to this Convention to make

certain crimes punishable by appropriate penalties which shall

take into account their grave nature. Article 9 establishes the

X

crimes to be covered by this Convention as the intentional commission of a murder, kidnapping or other attack upon the person or

liberty of any United Nations or associated personnel; a violent attack upon the official premises, the private accommodation or the

means of transportation of such a person likely to endanger his or

her person or liberty; a threat to commit any such attack with the

objective of compelling a physical or juridical person to do or to refrain from doing any act; an attempt to commit any such attack;

and an act constituting participation as an accomplice in any such

attack, or in an attempt to commit such attack, or in organizing or

ordering others to commit such attack. The terms ‘‘organizing or ordering’’ help bring within the ambit of the Convention attacks ordered by military or civilian officials, which attacks are particularly

relevant in the context of peacekeeping.

Article 10 requires a State Party to this Convention to establish

jurisdiction over the crimes set forth in Article 9 when the crime

is committed in the territory of that State or on board a ship or

aircraft registered in that State, or when the alleged offender is a

national of that State. Moreover, each State Party is also given the

option to establish jurisdiction over any such crime when it is committed by stateless persons whose habitual residence is in the territory of that State, or in cases where the crimes are committed with

respect to a national of that State, or when the offense is committed in order to compel that State to do or to abstain from doing

any act.

This Article also requires a State Party to take such measures

as may be necessary to establish its jurisdiction over the crimes set

out in Article 9 in cases where the alleged offender is present in

its territory and it does not extradite such person pursuant to Article 15 to any of the States Parties which have established their jurisdiction under the Convention. This Article also makes clear that

the Convention does not preclude criminal jurisdiction exercised in

accordance with national law.

Cooperation and Prevention

Articles 11, 12, 13, 16 and 18 specify the manner in which States

Parties shall cooperate in preventing crimes listed in Article 9 and

in communicating information regarding the commission of such

crimes and the outcome of prosecutions, as well as the measures

taken to detain an alleged offender for the purpose of prosecution

or extradition. States Parties are also, consistent with existing

treaty obligations and national laws, obligated to afford each other

assistance in criminal proceedings with respect to Article 9 crimes.

The State Party where an alleged offender is prosecuted must communicate the final outcome of the proceedings to the SecretaryGeneral of the United Nations who shall transmit the information

to other States Parties.

Prosecution and Extradition

Article 14 provides that if a State Party to this Convention does

not extradite an alleged offender present in its territory, it must

without exception whatsoever and without undue delay, submit the

case to its own competent authorities for the purpose of prosecution

through proceedings in accordance with the law of that State. The

XI

competent authorities have an obligation to take their decision to

prosecute in the same manner as in the case of an ordinary offense

of a grave nature under the law of that State.

Article 15 provides that to the extent that crimes set out in Article 9 are not extraditable offenses in any extradition treaty existing

between States Parties, they shall be deemed to be included as

such therein. States Parties undertake to include those crimes as

extraditable offenses in every extradition treaty to be concluded between them.

If a State Party that makes extradition conditional on the existence of a treaty receives a request for extradition from another

State Party with which it has no extradition treaty, it may consider

this Convention as the legal basis for extradition in respect of those

crimes. Extradition will be subject to the conditions provided in the

law of the requested State. Article 15 modifies existing extradition

treaties between States Parties to include offenses defined in Article 9 as extraditable offenses.

States Parties which do not make extradition conditional on the

existence of a treaty must recognize those crimes as extraditable offenses between themselves subject to the conditions provided in the

law of the requested State.

Article 17 provides that any person under investigation or being

prosecuted for offenses under the Convention shall be guaranteed

fair treatment, a fair trial and full protection of his or her rights.

Any alleged offender has a right to communicate with and receive

visits from representatives of his State of nationality or another

State entitled to protect that person’s rights.

Final Clauses

Article 19 provides that States Parties will disseminate the Convention as widely as possible and include the study thereof, as well

as relevant provisions of humanitarian law, in their programs of

military instruction.

Articles 20 and 21 contain a series of savings clauses. Article 20

provides that nothing in the Convention affects the applicability of

international humanitarian law and universally recognized standards of human rights as contained in international instruments in

relation to the protection of United Nations operations and United

Nations and associated personnel or the responsibility of such personnel to respect such law and standards. This clause recognizes

that the Convention is not intended to alter the existing application

of humanitarian and human rights law. Article 20 also restates the

obligation of United Nations and associated personnel to act in accordance with the terms of the mandate of the United Nations operation.

Article 21 provides that nothing in the Convention shall be construed so as to derogate from the right to act in self-defense. This

Article reflects a basic tenet of international law: that forces may

defend themselves when attacked or threatened by imminent attack. In this context, the right to self-defense does not extend to

persons who have initiated or attempted to initiate an attack on

United Nations or associated personnel.

Article 22(1) provides that disputes between two or more States

Parties over the interpretation or application of the Convention

XII

that cannot be settled by negotiation shall, at the request of one

of them, be submitted to arbitration. If the organization of such arbitration cannot be agreed upon within six months, any one of the

parties to the dispute may refer it to the International Court of

Justice. Under Article 22(2), a State Party may, at the time of signature, ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, declare that

it does not consider itself bound by all or part of paragraph 1.

Other States Parties shall not be bound by paragraph 1 or the relevant part thereof with respect to any State Party which makes

such a reservation. In October 1985, the United States withdrew

its declaration under Article 36 of the Statute of the International

Court of Justice accepting the compulsory jurisdiction of the Court.

Consistent with that decision, I recommend that the following reservation to Article 22(1) be included in the United States instrument of ratification:

Pursuant to Article 22(2) of the Convention, the United

States of American declares that it does not consider itself

bound by Article 22(1), but reserves the right specifically

to agree to follow this or any other procedure for arbitration in a particular case.

This reservation would allow the United States to agree to an adjudication by a chamber of the Court in a particular case, if that

were deemed advisable.

The Convention entered into force on January 15, 1999. Under

Article 27, the Convention enters into force for a state depositing

its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession

after the Convention has entered into force, 30 days after the deposit of such instrument.

Recommended legislation necessary to implement the Convention

will be submitted to the Congress separately. The legislation will

establish jurisdiction over offenses in accordance with Article 10(1)

(mandatory jurisdiction) and Article 10(2) (optional jurisdiction).

United States ratification of this Convention will not only promote the safety of all personnel serving under U.N. mandates, it

will, in particular, increase the legal protections afforded United

States citizens, including members of our armed forces, who are

placed in the dangerous circumstances which can follow from

peacekeeping duties. The Departments of Defense and Justice, as

well as the Joint Chiefs of Staff, join the Department in recommending that this Convention be transmitted to the Senate at an

early date for its advice and consent to ratification, subject to the

understanding to Article 1 and reservation to Article 22(1) as previously described.

Respectfully submitted,

MADELEINE ALBRIGHT.

(1)

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17