ICJ Warns US after Iran’s Complaint
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The International Court of Justice has sent a letter to the US secretary of state, urging Washington not to take any action that may contravene the ICJ’s upcoming ruling on a lawsuit brought by Iran against the US for breaching the 1955 Treaty of Amity by re-imposing sanctions.
In comments on Tuesday, head of the international legal affairs center of the Iranian President’s office, Mohsen Mohebi, said the ICJ president has sent the letter to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warning Washington not to take any action in contradiction to the future decisions of the ICJ on Iran’s recent complaint.
Iran recently filed the lawsuit against the United States stating that Washington's decision in May to re-impose sanctions after pulling out of the 2015 nuclear deal violates the 1955 Treaty of Amity between the two countries.
According to Mohebi, the ICJ president has referred to the article 74 of the International Court of Justice regulations given the significance of the case to write an official letter to Pompeo, warn the US government, and stress the necessity for the US to act in such a way that would not violate the decisions the ICJ is going to make after its August 27 session on the lawsuit brought by Iran.
Mohebi added that the Iranian administration has asked the ICJ for urgent action to prevent the illegal re-imposition of US sanctions against Iran while the lawsuit is being litigated, citing the harmful impacts of sanctions on Iran’s health sector and air travel safety.
The ICJ, which is based in The Hague and is also known as the World Court, is the United Nations tribunal for resolving international disputes. Iran's filing asks the ICJ to order the United States to provisionally lift its sanctions ahead of more detailed arguments.
Although the ICJ is the highest United Nations court and its decisions are binding, it has no power to enforce them, and countries - including the United States - have occasionally ignored them.