CHAPTER XVIII

PENAL MATTERS8Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated PersonnelNew York, 9 December 1994Entry into force15 January 1999, in accordance with article 27 which reads as follows: "1. This Convention shall enter into force thirty days after twenty-two instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession have been deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. 2. For each State ratifying, accepting, approving or acceding to the Convention after the deposit of the twenty-second instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, the Convention shall enter into force on the thirtieth day after the deposit by such State of its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.".Registration15 January 1999, No. 35457StatusSignatories43Parties95TextUnited Nations, <i>Treaty Series </i>, vol. 2051, p. 363The Convention was adopted by resolution <a href="/doc/source/docs/A_RES_49_59-E.pdf" target="_blank">49/59</a> of the General Assembly dated 9 December 1994. The Convention was open for signature on 15 December 1994 and will remain open for signature at the Headquarters of the United Nations in New York until 31 December 1995.

ParticipantSignatureRatification, Acceptance(A), Accession(a), Approval(AA), Succession(d)Albania30 Mar 2001 aArgentina15 Dec 1994 6 Jan 1997 Australia22 Dec 1995 4 Dec 2000 Austria 6 Sep 2000 aAzerbaijan 3 Aug 2000 aBangladesh21 Dec 1994 22 Sep 1999 Belarus23 Oct 1995 29 Nov 2000 Belgium21 Dec 1995 19 Feb 2002 Benin 2 Nov 2017 aBolivia (Plurinational State of)17 Aug 1995 22 Dec 2004 Bosnia and Herzegovina11 Aug 2003 aBotswana 1 Mar 2000 aBrazil 3 Feb 1995 6 Sep 2000 Brunei Darussalam20 Mar 2002 aBulgaria 4 Jun 1998 aBurkina Faso27 Oct 2008 aCanada15 Dec 1994 3 Apr 2002 Chile27 Aug 1997 aChina<superscript>1</superscript>22 Sep 2004 aColombia10 Jun 2016 aCongo19 Dec 2018 aCosta Rica17 Oct 2000 aCôte d'Ivoire13 Mar 2002 aCroatia27 Mar 2000 aCyprus 1 Jul 2003 aCzech Republic27 Dec 1995 13 Jun 1997 Democratic People's Republic of Korea 8 Oct 2003 aDenmark15 Dec 1994 11 Apr 1995 Dominican Republic16 Mar 2012 aEcuador28 Dec 2000 aEl Salvador25 Jun 2013 aEstonia 8 Mar 2006 aFiji25 Oct 1995 1 Apr 1999 Finland15 Dec 1994 5 Jan 2001 France12 Jan 1995 9 Jun 2000 Germany 1 Feb 1995 22 Apr 1997 Greece 3 Aug 2000 aGuatemala23 Sep 2008 aGuinea 7 Sep 2000 aGuyana21 May 2004 aHaiti19 Dec 1994 Honduras17 May 1995 Hungary13 Jul 1999 aIceland10 May 2001 aIreland28 Mar 2002 aItaly16 Dec 1994 5 Apr 1999 Jamaica 8 Sep 2000 aJapan 6 Jun 1995 6 Jun 1995 AKenya19 Oct 2004 aKuwait19 Jul 2004 aLao People's Democratic Republic22 Aug 2002 aLebanon25 Sep 2003 aLesotho 6 Sep 2000 aLiberia22 Sep 2004 aLibya22 Sep 2000 aLiechtenstein16 Oct 1995 11 Dec 2000 Lithuania 8 Sep 2000 aLuxembourg31 May 1995 30 Jul 2001 Malawi 7 Oct 2009 aMali 2 Jan 2008 aMalta16 Mar 1995 Monaco 5 Mar 1999 aMongolia25 Feb 2004 aMontenegro<superscript>2</superscript>23 Oct 2006 dNauru12 Nov 2001 aNepal 8 Sep 2000 aNetherlands (Kingdom of the)<superscript>3</superscript>22 Dec 1995 7 Feb 2002 ANew Zealand<superscript>4</superscript>15 Dec 1994 16 Dec 1998 North Macedonia 6 Mar 2002 aNorway15 Dec 1994 3 Jul 1995 Pakistan 8 Mar 1995 Panama15 Dec 1994 4 Apr 1996 Paraguay30 Dec 2008 aPhilippines27 Feb 1995 17 Jun 1997 Poland17 Mar 1995 22 May 2000 Portugal15 Dec 1994 14 Oct 1998 Republic of Korea 8 Dec 1997 aRomania27 Sep 1995 29 Dec 1997 Russian Federation26 Sep 1995 25 Jun 2001 Samoa16 Jan 1995 19 Aug 2005 Saudi Arabia22 Mar 2010 aSenegal21 Feb 1995 9 Jun 1999 Serbia31 Jul 2003 aSierra Leone13 Feb 1995 Singapore26 Mar 1996 aSlovakia28 Dec 1995 26 Jun 1996 Slovenia21 Jan 2004 aSpain19 Dec 1994 13 Jan 1998 Sri Lanka23 Sep 2003 aState of Palestine 2 Jan 2015 aSweden15 Dec 1994 25 Jun 1996 Switzerland 9 Nov 2007 aTogo22 Dec 1995 21 Apr 2008 Tunisia22 Feb 1995 12 Sep 2000 Türkiye 9 Aug 2004 aTurkmenistan29 Sep 1998 aUkraine15 Dec 1994 17 Aug 1995 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland<superscript>5</superscript>19 Dec 1995 6 May 1998 United States of America19 Dec 1994 Uruguay17 Nov 1995 3 Sep 1999 Uzbekistan 3 Jul 1996 aBelgiumInterpretative declaration:The Belgian Government declares the following: article 9, paragraph 1 (c), only covers cases where the threat is credible.ChinaReservation:The People's Republic of China makes a reservation with regard to Article 22, paragraph 1 of the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel and is not bound by the provisions of Article 22, paragraph 1.Costa RicaReservation:The Government of the Republic enters a reservation to article 2, paragraph 2, of the Convention, to the effect that limiting the scope of application of the Convention is contrary to the pacifist thinking of our country and, accordingly, that, in the event of conflicts with the application of the Convention, Costa Rica will, where necessary, give precedence to humanitarian law.Democratic People's Republic of KoreaReservation:"The Government of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea does not consider itself bound by all of paragraph 1 of Article 22 of the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel."El SalvadorDeclarations:With respect to the provisions of article 15 of the Convention, the Republic of El Salvador does not regard the above-mentioned Convention as the legal basis for cooperation in connection with extradition.With respect to article 22 of the Convention, the Government of the Republic of El Salvador, does not consider itself bound with the provisions of paragraph 1 of this article, since it doesn’t recognize the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice.GermanyDeclaration:In accordance with German law, the authorities of the Federal Republic of Germany will communicate information on alleged offenders, victims and circumstances of the crime (personal data) directly to the states concerned and, in parallel with this, will inform the Secretary-General of the United Nations that such information has been communicated.KuwaitReservation:... with a reservation in respect of article 22 (1), in accordance with article 22 (2) of the Convention.Lao People's Democratic RepublicReservation:"In accordance with paragraph 2, Article 22 of the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel, the Lao People's Democratic Republic does not consider itself bound by paragraph 1, article 22 of the present Convention. The Lao People's Democratic Republic declares that to refer dispute relating to interpretation and application of the present Convention to arbitration or International Court of Justice, the agreement of all parties concerned in the dispute is necessary."NepalDeclaration:“[The Government of Nepal] avails itself of the provisions of article 22, paragraph 2, and declares that it does not consider itself bound by the provisions of paragraph 1 of the said article under which any dispute between two or more States Parties concerning the interpretation or application of this Convention shall at the request of one of them, be submitted to arbitration or referred to the International Court of Justice, and states that in each individual case, prior consent of all parties to such a dispute is necessary for the submission of the dispute to arbitration or to the International Court of Justice.”Netherlands (Kingdom of the)Declaration:"The Kingdom of the Netherlands understands Article 14 of the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel states that the competent national authorities must decide on a case submitted to them in accordance with national law and in the same manner as they would decide on ordinary offences of a grave nature. Consequently, the Kingdom of the Netherlands understands this provision to include the right of its competent judicial authorities to decide not to prosecute a person alleged to have committed a crime as referred to in Article 9, paragraph 1, if, in the opinion of the competent judicial authorities, grave considerations of procedural law indicate that effective prosecution would be possible."Saudi ArabiaReservation:... the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia does not consider itself obligated to paragraph 1 of Article 22.SlovakiaDeclaration made upon signature and confirmed upon ratification:"If a dispute concerning the interpretation or application of the Convention is not settled by negotiation, the Slovak Republic prefers its submission to the International Court of Justice in accordance with article 22, paragraph 1 of the Convention. Therefore a dispute, to which the Slovak Republic might be a Party can be submitted to arbitration only with the explicit consent of the Slovak Republic."TunisiaReservation:The Tunisian Republic declares that it does not consider itself bound by the provisions of article 22, paragraph 1, of the Convention and that disputes concerning the interpretation or application of the Convention may be submitted to arbitration or to the International Court of Justice only with the prior consent of all the parties concerned.Türkiye<superscript>6</superscript>Declarations:“ I. The Republic of Turkey declares that it will implement the provisions of the Convention only to the State Parties with which it has diplomatic relations.II. The Republic of Turkey declares that this Convention is ratified exclusively with regard to the national territory where the Constitution and legal and administrative order of the Republic of Turkey are applied.III. The Republic of Turkey declares that, in accordance with article 22, paragraph 2 of the Convention, Turkey does not consider itself bound by article 22, paragraph 1 of this Convention. The explicit consent of the Republic of Turkey is necessary in each individual case before any dispute to which the Republic of Turkey is party concerning the interpretation or application of this Convention may be referred to the International Court of Justice.”Reservations:“ In connection with Article 20, paragraph 1 of the Convention, concerning the applicability of international humanitarian law, the Republic of Turkey is not a party to the Protocols I and II, dated 8 June 1977, Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and therefore will not be bound by the provisions of the said Protocols."Cyprus<right>7 December 2004</right>With regard to the declarations made by Turkey upon ratification:"The Government of the Republic of Cyprus has examined the declarations made by the Republic of Turkey upon ratification of the Convention on the Safety of the United Nations and Associated Personnel.The Republic of Turkey declares that it will implement the provisions of the Convention only to the States with which it has diplomatic relations.In view of the Government of the Republic of Cyprus this declaration in fact amounts to a reservation. The reservation makes it unclear to what extent the Republic of Turkey considers itself bound by the obligations arising from the Convention. In the absence of further clarification, this reservation creates uncertainty as to the States Parties in respect of which Turkey is undertaking the obligations in the Convention, and raises doubt as to the commitment of the Republic of Turkey to the object and purpose of the Convention.The Republic of Turkey furthermore declares that the Convention is ratified exclusively with regard to the national territory where the Constitution and the legal and administrative order of the Republic of Turkey are applied.In the view of the Republic of Cyprus, this declaration in fact amounts to a reservation. This reservation is contrary to the letter and the spirit of Article 10 of the Convention. It should be recalled that the duty to establish jurisdiction over the crimes set out in the Convention is mandatory upon States Parties when the crime is committed in the territory of that State or on board a ship or aircraft registered in that State and when the alleged offender is a national of that State. A limitation to the national territory is contrary to the obligations of States Parties in this regard and therefore incompatible with the object and purpose of the Convention.The Republic of Turkey also makes a reservation that in connection with Article 20, paragraph 1 of the Convention, concerning the applicability of international humanitarian law, the Republic of Turkey is not a party to the Protocols I and II, dated 8 June 1977, Additional to the Geneva Convention of 12 August 1949, and therefore will not be bound by the provisions of the said Protocols.The Republic of Cyprus considers this reservation to be contrary to the letter and spirit of Article 20 (1) of the Convention, which states that nothing shall affect the applicability of international humanitarian law as contained in international instruments in relation to the protection of United Nations operations and United Nations and Associated Personnel. Accordingly, this reservation is prohibited by the Convention.For these reasons, the Government of the Republic of Cyprus objects to the aforesaid reservations made by the Republic of Turkey to the Convention on the Safety of the United Nations and Associated Personnel.This objection shall not preclude the entry into force of the Convention between the Republic of Cyprus and the Republic of Turkey. The Convention, therefore, enters into force between the two States without the Republic of Turkey benefiting from these reservations".Greece<right>21 July 2005</right>With regard to the declarations made by Turkey upon ratification:"The Government of the Hellenic Republic has examined the declarations made by the Republic of Turkey upon ratification of the 1994 Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel.In the view of the Government of the Hellenic Republic, paragraph 1 of these declarations amounts to a reservation which raises concerns as to the commitment of Turkey to implement core provisions of the Convention and in particular those pertaining to the prevention and suppression of crimes against United Nations and Associated Personnel. The reservation may also lead to a discriminatory application of the Convention.In connection with paragraph II of the declarations, the Government of the Hellenic Republic is of the view that it also amounts to a reservation as it raises the same concerns as above. Furthermore, it raises doubts as to whether Turkey fully undertakes the obligations incumbent upon it by virtue of Article 10 of the Convention. The Government of the Hellenic Republic, therefore, considers that the above reservations are incompatible with the object and purpose of the Convention.Regarding the reservation made by the Republic of Turkey in connection with Article 20 par. 1 of the Convention, the Government of the Hellenic Republic considers that, in so far as the instruments referred to in the reservation are reflective of customary international law, they are universally binding and cannot be exempted from by a reservation.For these reasons, the Government of the Hellenic Republic objects to the above reservations made by the Republic of Turkey to the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel. This objection shall not preclude the entry into force of the Convention between the Hellenic Republic and the Republic of Turkey. The Convention, therefore, enters into force between the two States without taking into account the abovementioned reservations."United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland<right>16 August 2005</right>With regard to the declarations and reservation made by Turkey upon accession:"The Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has examined the declaration made by the Republic of Turkey upon ratification of the 1994 Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel.The Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is concerned that paragraph 1 of the declaration may amount to a reservation of indeterminate scope. Diplomatic relations between Turkey and other States are capable of being established and terminated at will, and without the other State Parties to the Convention knowing of their status. It would offend the legal certainty of treaty relations to attempt to make these contingent upon the existence of diplomatic relations.As regards paragraph II of the declaration, the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is of the view that it raises doubts as to whether Turkey fully undertakes the obligations incumbent upon it by virtue of Article 10 of the Convention. As well as providing that a State Party shall establish its jurisdiction over crimes committed within its national territory, or on board a ship or aircraft registered in that State, Article 10 also provides that a State shall take measures to assume jurisdiction where the alleged offender is a national of that State. Paragraph II, in attempting to ratify the Convention solely with regard to the national territory of Turkey, appears to be contrary to Article 10 (1) (b).The Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, therefore, considers that the above paragraphs of the declaration constitute reservations which are incompatible with the object and purpose of the Convention.Regarding the reservation made by the Republic of Turkey in connection with Article 20 (1) of the Convention, the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland considers that, in so far as the instruments referred to in the reservation are reflective of customary international law, they are universally binding and cannot be derogated from.For these reasons, the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland objects to the above reservations made by the Republic of Turkey to the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel.This objection shall not preclude the entry into force of the Convention between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Republic of Turkey. The Convention, therefore, enters into force between the two States without taking into account the above-mentioned reservations."China<right>27 July 2007</right>Pursuant to article 10, paragraph 2 of the Convention, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China has established its jurisdiction referred to in article 10, paragraph 2 (a) of the Convention over the crimes set out in article 9 of the Convention.Estonia“In accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 10 of the Convention the Republic of Estonia establishes her jurisdiction over any such crime when it is committed with respect to a national of Estonia.”1With the following declaration: In accordance with the provisions of Article 153 of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China and Article 138 of the Basic Law of the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China, the Government of the People’s Republic of China decides that the Convention shall apply to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China.2See note 1 under "Montenegro" in the "Historical Information" section in the front matter of this volume.3For the Kingdom in Europe, the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba.4See note 1 under “New Zealand” regarding Tokelau in the “Historical Information” section in the front matter of this volume.5 “… the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland wishes the United Kingdom’s Ratification of the Convention […] to be extended to the territory of the Isle of Man for whose international relations the United Kingdom is responsible. The Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland considers the extension of the aforesaid Convention […] to the Isle of Man to enter into force on the thirtieth day after of the deposit of this notification …”6In regard to the declarations made by the Government of Turkey upon accession, the Secretary-General received a communication from the following State on the date indicated hereinafter:<i>Portugal (15 December 2005): </i>The Government of the Portuguese Republic has carefully examined the declarations and reservations made by the Republic of Turkey upon the ratification of the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel.The Government of Portugal considers that paragraph I of the declarations amounts to a reservation which raises concerns as to the commitment of Turkey to implement core provisions of the Convention and in particular those concerning the prevention and suppression of crimes against United Nations and Associated personnel. This reservation may also lead to a discriminatory application of the Convention.Portugal considers that paragraph II of the declaration also amounts to a reservation which is contrary to the object and purpose of the Convention, namely to its Article 10 which requires that each State party shall take such measures as may be necessary to establish its jurisdiction over the crimes against Untied Nations and Associate personnel in the case of crimes committed in the territory of that State.With regard to the reservation made by Turkey in connection with article 20, paragraph 1 of the Convention, Portugal considers that in so far as the instruments referred to in a reservation are reflective of customary international law, they are universally binding and cannot be exempted from by a reservation.The Government of the Portugese Republic, therefore objects to the above reservations made by the Republic of Turkey to the Convention on the Safety of Untied Nations and Associate Personnel.This objection shall not preclude the entry into force o the Convention between Portugal and Turkey.