Key Benefits:
President of the Republic,
On the Report of the Prime Minister and the Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Having regard to Articles 52 to 55 of the Constitution;
In light of the amended Decree No. 53-192 of 14 March 1953 on the ratification and publication of commitments France;
view of Decree No. 96-437 of 20 May 1996 on the publication of the Convention on the Protection of the Alps (Alpine Convention), signed in Salzburg on 7 November 1991,
Protocol under the Alpine Convention on the protection of the Alps (Alpine Convention) Dispute resolution, signed in Lucerne on 31 October 2000, will be published in the Official Journal of the French Republic.
The Prime Minister and the Minister for Foreign Affairs are responsible for each For the purposes of this Decree, which shall be published in the Official Journal of the French Republic.
P R O T O C O L E
IN THE CONVENTION ON THE PROTECTION OF ALPES (ALPINE CONVENTION) ON DISPUTE SETTLEMENTS
PREAMBLE
The Federal Republic of Germany,
The Republic of Austria,
La République française,
La Italian Republic,
The Principality of Liechtenstein,
The Principality of Monaco,
The Republic of Slovenia,
The Swiss Confederation,
and
The European Community,
Contracting Parties to the Convention on the Protection of the Alps (Alpine Convention) concerned with the development of an effective procedure for consultation and dispute settlement within the framework of the Alpine Convention and its protocols,
agreed as follows:
Article 1
In the event of a dispute between the Contracting Parties concerning the interpretation or application of the Alpine Convention or any of its Protocols, the Contracting Parties shall, as a matter of priority, endeavour to Find a regulation by way of consultation Article 2
If a dispute is not settled within six months of the written request of one of the Contracting Parties concerned to initiate consultations, a Party shall May, by written notification addressed to the other Party and communicated to the Presidency of the Alpine Conference, initiate an arbitration procedure for the purpose of settling the dispute, in accordance with the provisions below. The Presidency shall without delay inform all Contracting Parties.
Article 3
For the implementation of an arbitration procedure within the meaning of Article 2, a arbitral tribunal composed of three Members shall be as follows:
(a) Each Party to the dispute shall appoint a member of the arbitral tribunal. If, within 60 days of the receipt by the Chair of the notification referred to in Article 2, one of the Parties to the dispute has not appointed a member, the appointment shall, at the request of the other Party to the dispute, be made by the Secretary-General The Permanent Court of Arbitration of The Hague within a new period of 30 days;
(b) The chairman of the arbitral tribunal shall be appointed by common accord of the two members appointed in accordance with the procedure referred to above. If no agreement is reached within 120 days of the notification to the Presidency referred to in Article 2, the appointment shall be made, at the request of one of the Parties to the dispute, by the Secretary-General of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague Within a new period of 30 days;
(c) The objection of a member of the arbitral tribunal shall be possible only by mutual agreement between the parties to the dispute;
d) In the case of a vacancy, the procedure for the initial appointment shall be Applies.
Article 4
1. Any Contracting Party shall be entitled to inform the arbitral tribunal of its opinion on the dispute.
2. Where a Contracting Party considers that, in a dispute, a legal interest is in dispute, it may make a request to the arbitral tribunal at the end of the intervention.
Article 5
Unless the Parties to the dispute otherwise decide, the arbitral tribunal shall establish its own rules of procedure.
Article 6
The Parties to the dispute shall refrain from any action that The award of the arbitral tribunal or prejudge it. The arbitral tribunal may, at the request of a Party to the dispute, provisionally adopt a provisional measure of the law of each Party to the dispute.
Article 7
Except where the Parties to the The arbitral tribunal shall determine the official language (s) of the Alpine Convention to be used for the procedure.
Article 8
1. The Parties to the dispute shall facilitate the work of the arbitral tribunal and, in particular, use all means at their disposal to:
a) Provide the court with all relevant documents and information, and
b) Allow the court, if necessary, to subpoena witnesses or experts and record their testimony.
2. All documents and information Submitted to the arbitral tribunal by a party to the dispute shall be simultaneously communicated by it to the other Party to the dispute.
Article 9
The arbitral tribunal shall pronounce its award In accordance with international law and the provisions of the Alpine Convention and Protocols.
Article 10
The fact that one of the Parties to the dispute has not presented itself or has refrained from asserting its case is not an obstacle to the proceedings. Before making its final award, the arbitral tribunal must ensure that the application is valid in fact and in law.
Article 11
The arbitral tribunal shall pronounce its final award on the Later than 6 months from the date on which it was created in its entirety, unless it considers it necessary to extend this period for a period that should not exceed 6 months.
Article 12
The arbitral tribunal decides, both on procedural matters and On matters of substance, to the majority of its members. The award of the court shall be final and binding on the Parties to the dispute. The arbitral tribunal must set out the grounds on which the award is based. The parties to the dispute shall apply the award without delay.
Article 13
Unless the arbitral tribunal decides otherwise because of the particular circumstances of the case, the expenses of the Court, including the remuneration of its members, shall be borne equally by the Parties to the dispute.
Article 14
The Chairman of the arbitral tribunal shall communicate the arbitral award to the Parties to the dispute and the Chair of the Alpine Conference. The Presidency shall transmit it to the Contracting Parties of the Alpine Convention and to the observers, within the meaning of Article 5, paragraph 5, of the Alpine Convention.
Article 15
1. The denunciation of this Protocol shall be permitted only simultaneously with the denunciation of the Alpine Convention.
2. However, this Protocol shall continue to apply to the Party to the dispute who is the author of the denunciation for the On the effective date of the denunciation. These procedures continue to the end.
Article 16
1. This Protocol shall be open for signature by the Contracting Parties to the Alpine Convention on 31 October 2000 and to the Republic of Austria, depositary, from 6 November 2000,
2. This Protocol shall enter into force for the Contracting Parties which have expressed their consent to be bound by the said Protocol three months after the date on which three States have deposited their instruments of ratification, acceptance or
. For Contracting Parties which subsequently express their consent to be bound by the Protocol, the Protocol shall enter into force three months after the date of deposit of the instrument of ratification, acceptance or approval. After the entry into force of an amendment to the Protocol, any new Contracting Party to the Protocol shall become a Contracting Party to the Protocol as amended.
Article 17
The depositary shall notify Any State referred to in the preamble and to the European Community in respect of this Protocol:
(a) Any signature;
(b) The deposit of any instrument of ratification, acceptance or approval;
(c) Any date of entry into force;
(d) Any declaration made by a Contracting Party or a signatory;
e) All Denunciation notified by a Contracting Party, including its effective date.
In witness whereof, the undersigned, being duly authorized thereto, have signed this Protocol.
Done at Lucerne on 31 October 2000, in French, German, Italian, The four texts being equally authentic, in a single copy, which shall be deposited in the State archives of the Republic of Austria. The Depositary shall transmit certified copies to all Signatory Parties.
For the Federal Republic of Germany,
For the Republic of Austria,
For the French Republic,
For the Italian Republic,
For the Principality of Liechtenstein,
For the Principality of Monaco,
For the Republic of Slovenia,
For the Swiss Confederation,
For the European Community.
Done at Paris, 26 May 2003.
Jacques Chirac
By President of the Republic:
Prime Minister,
Jean-Pierre Raffarin
Foreign Minister,
Dominique de Villepin