Nicaragua v. United States | |
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Court | International Court of Justice |
Full case name | Case Concerning the Military and Paramilitary Activities in and Against Nicaragua (Nicaragua v. United States of America) |
Decided | June 27, 1986 |
Citation(s) | 1986 I.C.J. 14 |
Case opinions | |
Separate Opinion: Nagendra Singh Dissent: Stephen Schwebel Dissent: Robert Jennings |
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Court membership | |
Judges sitting | Nagendra Singh, Guy Ledreit de Lacharrière, Roberto Ago, Mohammed Bedjaoui, Taslim Olawale Elias, Manfred Lachs, Kéba Mbaye, Ni Zhengyu, Shigeru Oda, José María Ruda, Stephen Schwebel, José Sette-Camara, Robert Jennings, Claude-Albert Colliard (ad hoc) |
Separate Opinion: Nagendra Singh
Separate Opinion: Manfred Lachs
Separate Opinion: José María Ruda
Separate Opinion: Taslim Olawale Elias
Separate Opinion: Roberto Ago
Separate Opinion: José Sette-Camara
Separate Opinion: Ni Zhengyu
The Republic of Nicaragua v. The United States of America (1986) ICJ 1 is a public international law case decided by the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The ICJ ruled in favor of Nicaragua and against the United States and awarded reparations to Nicaragua. The ICJ held that the U.S. had violated international law by supporting the Contras in their rebellion against the Nicaraguan government and by mining Nicaragua's harbors. The United States refused to participate in the proceedings after the Court rejected its argument that the ICJ lacked jurisdiction to hear the case. The U.S. also blocked enforcement of the judgment by the United Nations Security Council and thereby prevented Nicaragua from obtaining any compensation. Nicaragua, under the later, post-FSLN government of Violeta Chamorro, withdrew the complaint from the court in September 1992 following a repeal of the law which had required the country to seek compensation.
The Court found in its verdict that the United States was "in breach of its obligations under customary international law not to use force against another State", "not to intervene in its affairs", "not to violate its sovereignty", "not to interrupt peaceful maritime commerce", and "in breach of its obligations under Article XIX of the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation between the Parties signed at Managua on 21 January 1956."