Verdrag houdende instelling van een Internationale Douaneraad

Partijen met voorbehouden, verklaringen en bezwaren

Partij	Voorbehoud / verklaring	Bezwaren
Argentinië	Ja	Nee
Azerbeidzjan	Ja	Nee
Belarus	Ja	Nee
Brazilië	Ja	Nee
Chili	Ja	Nee
Cuba	Ja	Nee
Cyprus	Ja	Nee
Georgië	Ja	Nee
Israël	Ja	Nee
Mauritius	Ja	Nee
Roemenië	Ja	Nee
Russische Federatie	Ja	Nee
Servië	Ja	Nee
Spanje	Ja	Nee
Verenigde Staten van Amerika	Ja	Nee

Argentinië

21-03-2017

The Embassy of the Argentine Republic presents its compliments to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation and refers to the deposit of an instrument of accession to the "Convention Establishing a customs co-operation Council" by the territory of Kosovo.
The Argentine Republic upholds the validity of resolution 1244 (1999) of the Security Council and the principle of territorial integrity. For that reason, it does not recognize Kosovo as a State. Accordingly, since Kosovo is not an independent state, it cannot adhere to the Convention because it does not meet the requirements set forth in Article XVIII of such Convention. Argentina therefore objects to the accession process pursued by Kosovo, considering that the provisions of the Convention Establishing a custom co-operation Council will not apply to or bind Argentina in respect of Kosovo.
It should be noted that the role of Depositaries is regulated by the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties. In particular, Article 76 para. 2 sets forth the obligation for Depositaries to act impartially in the performance of their functions. In that vein, it should be recalled that the matter has already been dealt with and settled within the Council as a result of the debates held in 2011 and 2012. In fact, as can be observed in the Minutes of the 119th and 120th Sessions of the Council, "this matter should not appear on the Policy Commission or Council Agenda again until there was tangible progress, or some other specific reason that warranted its being taken up again." (Doc. SC0122E1a para 282).
In this context, the Argentine Republic draws the attention of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Belgium that the accession of Kosovo to the Convention not only fails to comply with the requirements of Article XVIII of the abovementioned Convention, but also would be a negative precedent with respect to the Convention and to other multilateral treaties requiring compliance with the requirement of statehood to become a Party thereto. Besides, it would have a negative impact for the ongoing work of the Council itself if the decisions therein taken are not respected.
Based on the foregoing, the Argentine Republic requests the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Belgium, in its capacity as Depository, to provide no further treatment to Kosovo's instrument of accession to the Convention Establishing a customs co-operation Council, and consider it as not received.
The Embassy of the Argentine Republic avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development the assurances of its highest consideration.

Azerbeidzjan

05-06-2017

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan presents its compliments to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium and has the honour to notify the Belgian Government, in its capacity as depositary of the Convention Establishing a Customs Co-operation Council, on the following position of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
The Republic of Azerbaijan raises objection to the accession of Kosovo to the Convention Establishing a Customs Co-operation Council of 15 December 1950 by virtue of the fact that the Republic of Azerbaijan does not recognise the mentioned entity as an independent state. Therefore, the Convention will not enter into force between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the mentioned entity.
The Republic of Azerbaijan is also of the position that the depositary of the Convention does not possess the authority to qualify any such entity as a state for the purposes of the Convention, and notification of 25 January 2017 shall not be interpreted as an act granting such competence to the depositary.
The Ministry avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of Belgium the assurances of its highest consideration.

Belarus

07-04-2017

The Embassy of the Republic of Belarus to the Kingdom of Belgium presents its compliments to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium and, with reference to its notification J4/JU/Cir.1788-S.7094/JUR.05.11.02/2017 of January 25, 2017 concerning the action taken by Kosovo with regard to the Convention Establishing a Customs Cooperation Council, and Annex, done at Brussels on 15 December 1950 (the Convention), and with reference to an updated annex to the Convention submitted, has the honour to inform about the following.
The Belarusian Side takes note of the abovementioned notification.
The Belarusian Side notes the lack of consensus among the States Parties to the Convention on this issue.
The Belarusian Side would like to recall that it does not recognize Kosovo as an independent State and the continuing participation of the Republic of Belarus in the Convention is without any prejudice to this position.
The Embassy of the Republic of Belarus avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium the assurances of its highest consideration.

Brazilië

17-03-2017

The Brazilian Embassy in Brussels presents its compliments to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium and has the honour of referring to the request of Kosovo to become a member of the World Customs Organisation (WCO).
In accordance with the regulations of the WCO, according to which the objections to new accessions must be submitted to the Belgian Government, as Depositary of the convention, the Embassy would like to hereby express the disagreement of the Brazilian Government concerning the intention of Kosovo to join the Organisation as an independent State, as applied.
The Brazilian Embassy would like to thank the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium for the attention given to the present correspondence, and avails itself of this opportunity to renew the assurance of its highest consideration.

Chili

16-05-2017

The Embassy of the Republic of Chile presents its compliments to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Directorate-general Bilateral Affairs, Direction Latin America and the Caribbean, and has the honour of referring to the Note N° 00018 of the Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium to Chile dated 7 March 2017, in which it informs the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Chile, Treaties Department, that it has received the instrument of accession of the Republic of Kosovo to the Convention establishing a Customs Co-operation Council and annex, signed in Brussels on 15 December 1950.
In this regard, the Embassy of Chile wishes to inform the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs of Belgium that the Government of Chile declares that Kosovo does not have the status of State under international law and expresses its refusal to recognize it as such. Consequently there are no contractual relations between the Government of Chile and Kosovo in the framework of this Convention.
The Embassy of the Republic of Chile would like to thank the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Directorate-general Bilateral Affairs, Direction Latin America and the Caribbean, for sending this Note to the relevant authorities, and avails itself of this opportunity to renew the assurance of its highest consideration.

Cuba

10-05-2017

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs presents its compliments to the Honourable Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium and referring to the latter's Verbal Note N°17/0117, dated 12 April 2017, concerning the Convention Establishing a Customs Cooperation Council and Annex, done at Brussels on 15 December 1950, has the honour to inform that, in conformity with the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties and the international provisions with regard to the recognition of States, the notification in reference has no legal value on behalf of the Republic of Cuba as it does not recognize the "Republic of Kosovo" as a subject of International Law.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs avails itself of the opportunity to renew to the Honourable Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium the assurances of its distinguished consideration.

Cyprus

20-03-2017

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus presents its compliments to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium and, further to the notification the Belgian Government made, on 25 th January 2017, in its capacity as depositary of the Convention Establishing a Customs Co-operation Council pertaining to the purported accession of Kosovo to the said Convention, it wishes to convey the following:
The Republic of Cyprus expresses its deep regret over the decision of the Belgian Government to accept "the instrument of accession" of Kosovo to the Convention Establishing a Customs Co-operation Council without prior discussion of the matter by the Council of the Convention, In contravention to the decision the Council made at its meeting in June 2012.
The Republic of Cyprus wishes herewith to reiterate its position that it does not recognize "Kosovo'·as an independent and sovereign state and, thus, considers its purported accession to the Convention as null and void. Neither the purported accession of "Kosovo" to the Convention nor any activity under the Convention involving or with respect to "Kosovo" implies or can be considered as implying recognition by the Republic of Cyprus of "Kosovo" as an independent and sovereign State nor does it establish a treaty relationship with "Kosovo" under the Convention.
The position of the Republic of Cyprus is in accordance with generally applicable rules and principles of international law, and is in conformity with UNSCR 1244/99 and the ICJ Opinion on the "Kosovo" declaration of independence.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium the assurances of its highest consideration.

Georgië

26-04-2017

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia presents its compliments to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium and referring to the 1950 Convention Establishing a Customs Co-operation Council has the honor to inform the following:
The Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium by its notification of January 25, 2017, informed the Contracting Parties on the accession of Kosovo to the above-mentioned Convention. As stated in the notification, according to paragraph (c) of the Article 18, the Convention entered into force for Kosovo on the date of the deposit of its instrument of accession, on January 25, 2017.
According to paragraph (a) of Article 18 of the Convention, the Government of any State which is not a signatory to the present Convention may accede thereto. Georgia, as well as many other States, does not recognize Kosovo as an independent state. Furthermore, Kosovo is not a member state of the UN. Hence, Georgia considers that the accession of Kosovo to the above-mentioned convention has no legal validity including in the context of Georgia's treaty relations with Kosovo under this convention. Moreover, it has to be noted that the accession of Kosovo contradicts to the decision of 119h/120th Customs Cooperation Council's Session when it appeared impossible to reach consensus on the receipt of Kosovo's instrument of accession.
Georgia does not recognize that the depositary has the power to undertake actions under the Convention, the treaty practice or public international law that may be construed as direct or implied qualification of entities as states. Georgia pursuing its state interests, considers unacceptable and dangerous adoption of such a practice.
Georgia reiterates that it does not recognize Kosovo as an independent state and requests the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium to notify all contracting parties of the Convention Establishing a Customs Co-operation Council of Georgia's position on the above issue.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium the assurances of its highest consideration.

Israël

20-05-2015

The Embassy of Israel presents its compliments to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of Belgium, in the capacity of the Belgian Government as depositary to the Convention Establishing a Customs Co-operation Council and Annex and refers to the communication by the depositary, dated March 24, 2015, regarding the Palestinian request to accede to this Convention (Reference Number J4/CD/Cir.l737-S5179/JUR.05.il.02/2015).
'Palestine' does not satisfy the criteria for statehood under international law and lacks the legal capacity to join the aforesaid Convention both under general international law and the terms of bilateral Israeli-Palestinian agreements.
The Government of Israel does not recognize 'Palestine' as a State, and wishes to place on record, for the sake of clarity, its position that it does not consider 'Palestine' a party to the Convention and regards the Palestinian request for accession as being without legal validity and without effect upon Israel's treaty relations under the Convention.

Mauritius

10-05-2017

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade of the Republic of Mauritius presents its compliments to the Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium in Dar-es-Salaam and has the honour to refer to the Embassy's Note Verbale (J4/2017/083/17) dated 27 March 2017 regarding the accession by Kosovo to the 'Convention Establishing a Customs Cooperation Council and Annex, Done at Brussels on 15 December 1950’ of which the Belgian Government is the depository.
The Ministry wishes to apprise the esteemed Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium that the Republic of Mauritius does not recognise Kosovo as an independent State in line with the UN Security Council Resolution 1244 (1999). The accession of Kosovo to the Convention is without prejudice to the position of Mauritius on the recognition of the status of Kosovo and can, in no case, influence the policy of the Government of Mauritius in this regard.
The Ministry would appreciate it if the esteemed Embassy could apprise the relevant authorities accordingly.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade of the Republic of Mauritius avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium the assurances of its highest consideration.

05-07-2017

The Embassy of the Republic of Mauritius presents its compliments to the federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium in its capacity of Depositary of the Convention Establishing a Customs Cooperation Council signed in Brussel on 15 December 1950 and has the honour to refer to the request of Kosovo to accede to the said Convention and become a member of the World Customs Organisation (WCO) and to inform as follows:
In accordance with Article XVII of the Convention, only States may accede to the Convention. In this respect and is the case for many States which are Party to the Convention, the Governement of the Republic of Mauritius in accordance with, inter alia, Resolution 1244 (1999) of the United Nations Security Council, does not recognise Kosovo as an independent and sovereign state.
In view thereof, the Government of the Republic of Mauritius hereby submits its official objection to Kosovo acceding to the Convention.
Furthermore, any purported accession of Kosovo to the convention or any activity or decision under the Convention involving or with respect to Kosovo shall be without prejudice to the position of the Republic of Mauritius concerning the status of Kosovo and cannot imply or be construed as implying recognition by the Republic of Mauritius of Kosovo as an independent and sovereign State.
The Government of the Republic of Mauritius further affirms that in the event of any purported accession of Kosovo to the Convention, it will not consider itself to be in a treaty relationship with Kosovo under the Convention.
The Embassy of the Republic of Mauritius requests the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, as Depository for the Convention Establishing a Customs Cooperation Council, to transmit this Note to all State Parties to the Convention and to the Secretary-General of the World Customs Organisation.
The Embassy of the Republic of Mauritius avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Federal Public Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium the assurance of its highest consideration.

Roemenië

07-04-2017

The Embassy of Romania to the Kingdom of Belgium presents its compliments to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium and with reference to the Verbal Note of the Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium in Bucharest no. B1/183/ of March 1, 2017 concerning the receipt of the instrument of accession from the so-called Republic of Kosovo to the Convention Establishing a Customs Cooperation Council has the honour to state to following:
Romania considers that in the current case the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Belgium has not acted impartially and within the limits of the competences of the depositary of the treaty.
Considering that the said convention is open to the accession of States or separate custom territories, and that the statehood of Kosovo is not recognized by a number of States Parties to the convention (nor does it meet the criteria for separate custom territory), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Belgium should have not accepted the deposit of the instrument and should have referred the matter for decision to the Council of the World Customs Organization. Such an approach would have been consistent with the normal practice in cases where the statehood of an entity which seeks accession to a multilateral treaty is in doubt, and it was also followed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Belgium on the occasion of the previous attempt by Kosovo to become a party to the Convention.
The Embassy of Romania kindly requires the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to seize the Council of the World Customs Organization with the issue of the deposit of the instrument of accession by Kosovo and to refrain from any notification or other demarches which might prejudge the settlement of the issue.
Romania considers that the so-called Republic of Kosovo does not meet the criteria for statehood under international law and therefore, even if Kosovo accedes eventually to the Convention, such accession cannot create any treaty relationship between Romania and Kosovo, and cannot modify in any way the position of Romania on the status of Kosovo.
The Embassy of Romania to the Kingdom of Belgium avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium the assurances of its highest consideration.

Russische Federatie

30-03-2017

The Embassy of the Russian Federation presents its compliments to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium and, referring to the verbal note J4/JU/Cir.1788-S.7094/ JUR.05.11.02/2017 dated 25 January 2017, which the Federal Public Service communicated in its capacity as Depositary of the Convention on the establishment of a Customs Cooperation Council, signed in Brussels on 15 December 1950, has the honour to inform you of the following.
In accordance with Article XVlll of the Convention, only States may accede to the Convention. The Russian Federation, taking into account, inter alia, Resolution 1244 (1999) of the United Nations Security Council, does not recognise Kosovo as a State. As such, it considers that the relevant provisions of the Convention, including those relating to the legal consequences of depositing instruments of ratification by acceding States, as well as the standards of customary international law related thereto, are not applicable to the "instrument of accession" of the territorial unit in question.
In light of the above, the Russian Federation does not consider itself bound by the Convention with regards to the territorial unit in question.
Similarly, the Russian Federation sees no reason for the Depositary to have accepted and notified the notice of "accession" to the Convention of the territorial unit referred to, under the terms of Article XVIII, and considers as unfounded the assertion laid down in the above-mentioned Note that this international act can enter into force with respect to the territorial unit In question.
The Embassy, referring to paragraph 2 of Article 76 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (1969), has the honour of reminding the Federal Public Service that the functions of the depositary of a treaty are international in character and the Depositary is under an obligation to act impartially in their performance.
The Embassy assumes that the Federal Public Service is fully aware of the fact that the region of Kosovo is not recognised by several States, including the Contracting Parties to the Convention, as well as the resolution of the United Nations Security Council 1244 (1999), which reaffirms "the commitment of all Member States to the territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia".
In light of the above, the Embassy calls on the Federal Public Service to perform its functions as the Depositary of an international convention impartially and conscientiously with regards to the international and impartial character of these functions.
Furthermore, the Embassy expresses its dismay at the delay with which the Depositary informed the Contracting Parties and the World Customs Organisation that it had received the "instrument of accession" of the territorial unit in question. The Russian Party hopes that any subsequent communication of documents, notifications and announcements pertaining to the Convention will be performed by the Depositary in a timely manner.
Pursuant to paragraph 1 f) of Article 77 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (1969), the Embassy requests the Federal Public Service to inform the Contracting Parties to the Convention establishing a Customs Cooperation Council, and the States entitled to become Parties to the latter, as well as the World Customs Organisation, of the position of the Russian Federation hereby stated.
The Embassy of the Russian Federation avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation the assurance of its highest consideration.

Servië

07-03-2017

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia presents its compliments to the Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium and, with reference to the Embassy's Note No. J4/2017/0286 of 6 March 2017 concerning the receipt of the Instrument of accession from the so-called Republic of Kosovo to the Convention Establishing a Customs Cooperation Council (1950) has the honour to express a strong protest to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of Belgium.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia wishes to point out that Kosovo and Metohija is an autonomous province and an integral part of the Republic of Serbia, administered by the United Nations Interim Administration Mission In Kosovo (UNMIK) in accordance with the legally binding UNSC resolution 1244 (1999), adopted under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter. In addition, Article XVIII of the Convention Establishing a customs Cooperation Council specifies that the Government of any State may accede to the Convention as a Party thereof. Socalled "Kosovo" does not meet the set criteria because, as already indicated - under UNSC resolution 1244 (1999), reaffirming the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (now Republic of Serbia) - Kosovo and Metohija is an integral part of the territory of the Republic of Serbia under UN administration and, consequently, not a state.
The attention of the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Kingdom of Belgium is drawn to the fact that it was informed of the Council's conclusion of 2012, when the so-called Republic of Kosovo first attempted to accede to the Convention Establishing a Custom Cooperation Council and when, upon objections raised by many World Customs Organization members, it was concluded that, at that point, it was not possible to reach consensus on receipt of the said instrument, whereas the Council Chairman summed up that"... the matter should not appear on the Policy Commission or Council Agenda again until there was tangible progress, or some other specific reason that warranted its being taken up again". In this sense, receipt of the Instrument of accession from the so­ called Republic of Kosovo constitutes a violation of international law and is In contravention of the conclusion made by the Council Chair and of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties which, Article 76, states that "the depository is under an obligation to act impartially in their performance", whereas article 77, paragraph 2, of the Convention provides that "In the event of any difference appearing between a State and the depository as to the performance of the latter's functions, the depository shall bring the question to the attention of the signatory States and the contracting States or, where appropriate, of the competent organ of the international organization concerned”.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs wishes to underline that such steps seriously jeopardize the successful outcome of the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, conducted with EU facilitation, and deeply politicize the work of an expert organization such as the World Customs Organization, creating a dangerous precedent for the future.
Therefore, receipt of the instrument of accession from the so-called Republic of crossover on the Convention Establishing a Customs Cooperation Council is considered by the Republic of Serbia as null and void.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs requests the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, as depository for the Convention Establishing a Customs Cooperation Council, to transmit this note to all State Parties to the Convention and to the Secretary-General of the World Customs Organization.

Spanje

13-03-2017

The Spanish Embassy in Brussels presents its compliments to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation and, referring to its Note Verbale of 6 March, has the honour of sharing the following considerations on the possible inclusion of the territory of Kosovo in the Convention establishing a Customs Cooperation Council, dated 25 January 2017:
1. The Kingdom of Spain would like in the first instance to express its surprise and concern at the conduct of the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, for having accepted the instrument of accession of the territory of Kosovo to the Convention establishing a Customs Cooperation Council, acting simultaneously as recogniser and Depositary country of the Convention, thus exceeding its role as a Depositary, by attributing statehood to a territory whose international status is disputed. With this decision, the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not observed, in our view, the impartiality required by the Depositary of the Convention of an Organisation in which a large number of its Member States do not recognise the statehood of the territory of Kosovo.
2. The Kingdom of Spain also wishes to remind the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that, in accordance with international law, the Depositary of an international Convention does not have the jurisdiction to determine whether an entity meets the mandatory requirement of statehood, as required by the Convention. In light of the above, simply receiving the instrument of accession of the territory of Kosovo represents a dangerous precedent, which contradicts the duty of neutrality of any Depositary country, in accordance with the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties of 23 May 1969 (article 76).
In this sense, Article 77.2 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties of 1969, stipulates that, in the event of any difference appearing between a State and the Depositary as to the performance of the latter's functions, the Depositary shall bring the question to the attention of the signatory States and the contracting States or, where appropriate, of the competent organ of the international organisation concerned. This is exactly the way the Secretary General of the United Nations functions when acting as the Depositary in disputed situations, and not acting as though it were a simple formal decision.
3. In addition, in the case at issue, it seems apt to recall that there is a history of different behaviour on the part of the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, even within the World Customs Organisation. Indeed, in receiving the instrument of accession of the territory of Kosovo, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had consulted the bodies of the World Customs Organisation in 2012 on the possible accession of the territory of Kosovo. At the time, these bodies decided that the issue was not yet at the stage where a response could be provided to the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Since this date in 2012, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation has not been made aware of a subsequent decision to the contrary by the bodies of the World Customs Organisation. Moreover, it seems appropriate to mention that the WCO ("CEFTA Week" in 2011) referred to the territory of Kosovo using the designation "UNMIK-Kosovo", which properly reflects, in the opinion of Spain, the content of Resolution 1244 of the United Nations Security Council. A Resolution which, let us reiterate, is still in force.
4. The territory of Kosovo undeniably has a disputed international status. The Kingdom of Spain, in the exercise of its sovereign powers, does not recognise the unilateral declaration of independence of the territory of Kosovo, as is the case for many States Party to the Convention. Spain emphasises observance of the principle of territorial integrity of States and of international law, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the Final Act of the Helsinki Conference. Furthermore, Spain fully respects the content of the aforementioned prevailing Resolution 1244/1999 of the United Nations Security Council. Consequently, the Kingdom of Spain considers that the territory of Kosovo cannot accede to the Convention establishing a World Customs Organisation, given that this territory does not enjoy the status of Statehood (Article 18) which is essential for accession.
In light of the above, the Spanish Embassy in Belgium:
1. Requests that the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs explains the reasons which justify its change of behaviour as a Depositary in 2017, compared to 2012 and,
2. Requests that, with the aim of maintaining its impartiality as a Depositary, the decision to accept the instrument of accession presented by the territory of Kosovo be suspended (consequently amending the list appended to the aforementioned Note Verbale), and that the matter be brought to the attention of the States Party to and bodies of the World Customs Organisation so that they may take a decision.
Finally, the Spanish Embassy in Belgium wishes to warn of the serious consequences arising from the conduct of a Depositary country, and of the risks incurred, by unnecessarily introducing elements of a political nature into an Organisation with a highly technical nature.
Ultimately, Spain considers that the act of receiving and accepting, on the part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the instrument of accession of the territory of Kosovo to the Convention establishing a Customs Cooperation Council is not valid and does not have effect.
The Spanish Embassy in Belgium avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation the assurance of its highest consideration.

Verenigde Staten van Amerika

05-06-2015

The Embassy of the United States of America presents its compliments to the Ministry of Federal Public Service, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development of the Kingdom of Belgium and refers to the Ministry's depositary notice J4/CD/Cir.l737-S5179/JUR.05.11.02/2015, dated March 24, 2015, regarding the purported accession of the « State of Palestine » to the Convention Establishing a Customs Co-operation Council, done at Brussels December 15, 1950 (the Convention), for which Belgium is the depositary.

The Government of the United States of America does not believe the "State of Palestine" qualifies as a sovereign State and does not recognize it as such. Accession to the Convention is limited to sovereign States. Therefore, the Government of the United States of America believes that the "State of Palestine" is not qualified to accede to the Convention and affirms that it will not consider itself to be in a treaty relationship with the "State of Palestine" under the Convention.