Second Reading of the ILC Draft Articles on State Responsibility: Further Progress

Introduction At its 51st session, held in Geneva from May to July 1999, the International Law Commission resumed its work on the topic of State responsibility with the view to completing the second reading of the Draft articles at the end of its current quinquennial mandate (2001). Basing itself on a Second Report by the present Special Rapporteur, the ILC continued the task of systematically considering the draft articles in the light of the comments of Governments and developments in State practice, judicial decisions and in the literature. The remaining chapters in Part One, namely Chapters III (“Breach of an International Obligation”), IV (“Implication of a State in the Internationally Wrongful Act of Another State”) and V (“Circumstances Precluding Wrongfulness”), were reviewed by the Commission and further considered by the Drafting Committee. The question of the treatment to be reserved to counter-measures, and other remaining strategic issues concerning the following parts of the draft articles, was also considered. In this note, we review the issues discussed in 1999 and give some preliminary idea of the range of issues remaining to be decided as to Parts 2 and following of the Draft articles.