Law of Georgia on International Treaties of Georgia

LAW OF GEORGIA

ON INTERNATIONAL TREATIES OF GEORGIA

Chapter I - General Provisions

Article 1 - Objectives of the Law

This Law defines the procedure for concluding, executing, and terminating the international treaties of Georgia. An international treaty of Georgia shall be concluded, executed, and terminated in accordance with universally recognised principles and norms of international law, the Constitution of Georgia, the international treaties, and this Law.

Article 2 - Scope of the Law

1. This Law shall apply to all international (interstate, intergovernmental, and interagency) treaties of Georgia being governed by the norms of international law irrespective of their type and name (e.g., treaty, agreement, convention, pact, protocol, exchange of notes, or an international treaty of other type and with other name).

2. The provisions of this Law shall also apply to the international treaties of the former USSR, with respect to which Georgia has expressly agreed to be a successor state.

Article 3 - Definition of terms

The terms used in this Law shall have the following meaning:

a) international treaty – a written agreement Georgia has concluded with a foreign State (States) or an international organisation (organisations) governed by the norms of international law regardless of its being represented by a single instrument or by two or more related instruments and whatever its particular designation;

b) contracting party - a State having consented to be bound by the treaty, regardless of the treaty being entered into force;

c) party - a State having consented to be bound by the treaty and for whom the treaty is in force;

d) conclusion of treaty - all actions by Georgia with regard to a treaty at the international level, including holding negotiations, signing the treaty and accepting it as binding;

e) signature – a stage for concluding a treaty, or a form of expressing consent by Georgia to be bound by the treaty;

f) ratification, approval, accession - forms of expressing consent by Georgia to be bound by the treaty;

g) full powers - a document issued by a competent authority of Georgia designating a person or several persons to represent Georgia for negotiating, adopting or authenticating the text of a treaty, or for accomplishing any other act with respect to a treaty;

h) reservation - a unilateral statement made when signing, ratifying, approving or acceding to a treaty, whereby it purports to exclude or to modify the legal effect of certain provisions of the treaty in their application to Georgia;

i) international organisation - an international interstate or intergovernmental organisation;

j) depositary - a State, an international organisation or its chief executive official being in charge of keeping the original text of the treaty and performs other related duties under the norms of international law;

k) denunciation - a form of unilateral termination of a treaty implying the termination of a treaty under the provisions of the treaty;

l) invalidation (annulment) - a form of terminating a treaty unilaterally implying the termination of the treaty when the other party seriously breaches the treaty, or as provided for by other norms of international law;

m) correction - correcting the Georgian translation in the case of a discrepancy between the certified version of Georgian translation of the treaty and its true copy in a foreign language.

Law of Georgia No 2886 of 14 April 2006 – LHG I, No 10, 28.4.2006, Art. 73

Article 4 - International treaties of Georgia

1. The following treaties shall be concluded with foreign states and international organisations:

a) interstate agreements - on behalf of Georgia

b) intergovernmental agreements - on behalf of Georgia

c) international interagency agreements – on behalf of a ministry of Georgia or on behalf of the State Security Service of Georgia.

2. A treaty shall be concluded on behalf of Georgia when the parties consent the treaty to be an interstate agreement, as well as a treaty relating to:

a) territorial claims and armistice

b) human rights and freedoms

c) citizenship

d) participation of Georgia in interstate structures and other international unions (organisations)

e) (deleted)

f) use of the territory and natural resources of Georgia

g) borrowing and lending of loans by the State, and issuing state guarantees.

3. All the international treaties not relating to the issues in paragraph 2 of this article, or when the parties consent the treaties to be the intergovernmental agreements shall be concluded on behalf of the Government of Georgia.

4. A treaty shall be concluded on behalf of a ministry of Georgia when the treaty is an international interagency treaty relating to the issues under the competence of the ministry.

5. Border Police of Georgia, a public sub-agency under the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia shall conclude international interagency agreements about border issues on behalf of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia.

6. An international interagency agreement shall be concluded on behalf of the State Security Service of Georgia when the agreement relates to the issues under its competence.

Law of Georgia No 4141 of 27 December 2006 – LHG I, No 49, 29.12.2006, Art. 376

Law of Georgia No 3879 of 7 December 2010 – LHG I, No 69, 15.12.2010, Art. 420

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Law of Georgia No 4645 of 16 December 2015 – website, 28.12.2015

Article 5 - Competence of the territorial units of Georgia

The competence of the Autonomous Republics of Abkhazia and Ajara, as well as of other territorial units of Georgia with respect to treaties shall be defined after the establishment of territorial structure of the state of Georgia.

Article 6 – Role of treaties in the legislation of Georgia

Treaties shall be an integral part of the legislation of Georgia.

2. Treaties of Georgia shall prevail over domestic normative acts unless the treaties contradict the Constitution, constitutional law and constitutional concordat of Georgia.

3. Provisions of the gazetted treaties determining the specific rights and obligations and not requiring transposition in domestic legislation by adopting specific acts, shall be directly applicable in Georgia.

Law of Georgia No 1221 of 12 June 2009 – LHG I, No 12, 29.6.2009, Art. 56

Article 7 - Consent of Georgia to be bound by treaties

1. Georgia may express consent to be bound by treaties through:

a) signing the treaties

b) exchanging the documents (notes) as parts of the treaty

c) ratifying the treaties

d) approving the treaties

e) acceding to the treaties

f) other mutually agreed means of consent to the treaties.

2. The public authorities of Georgia shall decide on giving consent to be bound by the treaties within the competences under the Constitution of Georgia and this Law.

Chapter II - Conclusion of Treaties

Article 8 - Recommendations for conclusion of international treaties

1. The parliament of Georgia shall submit its recommendations for concluding a treaty to the Government of Georgia, and to the President of Georgia if, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia.

2. The Supreme Court and the Public Defender of Georgia as well may submit recommendations on issues falling within their competence.

3. Recommendations for concluding a treaty must substantiate the appropriateness of concluding the treaty.

4. If the Government of Georgia approves the submitted recommendations, it shall assign the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia to prepare a proposal for concluding the treaty, within two months from submitting the above recommendations.

5. The procedure under paragraph 4 of this article shall apply if the recommendations were submitted to the President of Georgia who approved them and then applied to the Government of Georgia for supporting the recommendations that eventually approved them as well.

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Article 9 - Proposals for conclusion of treaties

1. The proposal referred to in Article 8(4) of this Law for concluding an international treaty shall be submitted to the Government of Georgia no later than six months after the respective decision was made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia.

2. In the case provided for by Article 8(5) of this Law, the Government of Georgia shall forward the proposal prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia for concluding the treaty to the President of Georgia.

3. The Ministry of Foreign affairs of Georgia shall submit its proposal for concluding the treaty to the Government of Georgia as determined by this article.

4. A Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia shall submit its proposal for concluding a treaty to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia.

5. A proposal of a Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia for concluding a treaty must include: the authentic text of the treaty in Georgian and in the relevant foreign language, the substantiation of appropriateness of concluding the treaty, its political, legal, economic, financial, and other possible implications. If necessary, draft amendments to the normative acts of Georgia must be attached to the proposal; furthermore, the state body in charge of executing the treaty and the need for implementing other measures must be specified.

6. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall submit the proposal under this article for concluding the treaty: to the Ministry of Justice of Georgia for the report on compliance of the treaty with the legislation of Georgia and on possible legal implications; to the Ministry of Finance of Georgia for the report on possible financial and economic implications of concluding the treaty; also, to a respective ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia for a report.

7. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall submit the proposal of a Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia for concluding an interstate and intergovernmental international treaty and the reports referred to in paragraph 6 of this article together with its own report to the Government of Georgia.

8. A proposal for concluding an international treaty submitted to the Government of Georgia must contain: a draft treaty (in Georgian); the report by the Ministry of Justice of Georgia on compliance of the treaty with the legislation of Georgia and on its possible legal implications; the report by the Ministry of Finance of Georgia on possible financial and economic implications of concluding the treaty; a report of a respective Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia, and the report of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia on possible foreign policy implications of concluding the treaty. If necessary, the draft amendments to the normative acts of Georgia must be enclosed with the proposal.

9. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall submit to the Government of Georgia a proposal for concluding an interagency international treaty requiring amendments to be made to the normative acts of Georgia.

10. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall submit an offer by a foreign state or international organisation on concluding an international treaty to the Government of Georgia in the form of a proposal as determined by this article. If, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia, the Government of Georgia shall forward the proposal received from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia to the President of Georgia.

Law of Georgia No 6439 of 12 June 2013 – website, 22.6.2012

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Law of Georgia No 4645 of 16 December 2015 – website, 28.12.2015

Article 10 - Intent of Georgia to participate in international treaties

1. If a prior consent of other participant State (international organisation) of a treaty is required for Georgia to participate in a treaty, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall submit a proposal of intent to participate in the treaty to the Government of Georgia as determined by Article 9 of this Law,. If, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia, the Government of Georgia shall forward the proposal received from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia to the President of Georgia.

2. The Government of Georgia shall make a decision in the form of a decree on the intention of Georgia to participate in a treaty; and if, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia, he/she shall make a decision, in agreement with the Government of Georgia, in the form of an edict that requires countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia.

3. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall notify the depository or other participant State of a treaty about the intent of Georgia to participate in a treaty.

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Article 11 - Decision on holding negotiations and on signing international treaties

1. The Government of Georgia shall make a decision in the form of a decree on holding negotiations about interstate and intergovernmental treaties and on signing them; and if, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia, he/she shall make a decision, in agreement with the Government of Georgia, in the form of an edict that requires a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia.

2. The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall make a decision, in agreement with the respective agency, in the form of an order on holding negotiations and on signing interagency international treaties.

Law of Georgia No 5790 of 13 March 2012 – website, 21.3.2012

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Article 12 - Carrying out actions for concluding international treaties without presenting full powers

1. The President of Georgia, the Prime Minister of Georgia and the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Georgia may carry out any actions for concluding international treaties without presenting full powers.

2. Head of diplomatic mission of Georgia, and representatives of Georgia to international organisations and conferences, also to their bodies, may hold negotiations with a host State or within the current international organisation or conference, for receiving the text of an international treaty without presenting full powers.

Law of Georgia No 1221 of 12 June 2009 – LHG I, No 12, 29.6.2009, Art. 56

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Article 13 - Full powers to carry out actions for concluding international treaties

1. Full powers must define the object of negotiations and the limits of a person's competence.

2. The Prime Minister of Georgia shall grant full powers for concluding interstate and intergovernmental treaties by issuing an order; and if, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia, he/she shall grant full powers by issuing an edict that requires a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall finalise the full powers.

3. The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall grant full powers for concluding interagency international treaties by issuing an order and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall finalise the full powers.

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Article 14 - The international treaty the Parliament of Georgia expresses its consent to be bound by

1. The Parliament of Georgia shall express its consent to be bound by an international treaty of Georgia through ratification (or accession).

2. Apart from the international treaty to be ratified, mandatory shall be ratification of (or accession to) the treaty that is:

a) providing for Georgia to join an international organisation or an interstate union;

b) military-oriented;

c) relating to territorial integrity of a state or to alteration of state boundaries;

d) connected with making and granting of loans by a state;

e) requiring change of domestic legislation, adoption of laws and acts with the force of law that are necessary to fulfil the assigned international obligations;

f) requiring ratification under other legislative act of Georgia.

Article 15 – Submission of international treaties to the Parliament of Georgia

1. The Government of Georgia shall submit international treaties, the Parliament of Georgia expresses its consent to be bound by, to the Parliament of Georgia for ratification (or for accession to it); and if the President of Georgia has concluded an international treaty, or if, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia, the President of Georgia shall submit the treaty to the Parliament of Georgia in agreement with the Government of Georgia that requires a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia.

2. An international treaty must be submitted for ratification (or for accession to it) in Georgian (in the presence of an authentic text in a foreign language, the treaty must be submitted along with an officially certified Georgian translation). The treaty must be accompanied by: the report of the Ministry of Justice of Georgia on compliance of the treaty with the legislation of Georgia and on its possible legal implications; the report by the Ministry of Finance of Georgia on possible financial and economic implications of concluding the treaty; a report of a respective Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia, and the report of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia on possible foreign policy implications of concluding the treaty.

3. The Bureau for Translating International Treaties (‘Translation Bureau’) - a legal entity under public law within the governance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall translate the foreign texts of international treaties of Georgia into Georgian and shall officially certify the translations.

3^1. Types of services provided by the Translation Bureau, amount of service fees and payment procedure shall be determined by an order of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Georgia.

4. The Government of Georgia, and if the President of Georgia has concluded an international treaty, or if, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia, the President of Georgia in agreement with the Government of Georgia, shall submit, if necessary, to the Parliament of Georgia a draft law on making changes to a respective legislative act of Georgia together with the international treaty already submitted for ratification (or for accession) with a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia.

Law of Georgia No 301 of 16 May 2000 – LHG I, No 21, 1.6.2000, Art. 55

Law of Georgia No 5790 of 13 March 2012 – website, 21.3.2012

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Law of Georgia No 4645 of 16 December 2015 – website, 28.12.2015

Article 16 - Preliminary review of treaties submitted for ratification

The Foreign Affairs Committee of the Parliament of Georgia, if necessary, together with other committees of the Parliament of Georgia, shall hold a preliminary review of the international treaty submitted to the Parliament of Georgia for ratification, as well as of the draft law under article 15(4), and shall make a respective conclusion.

Article 17 - Deciding on the ratification of (or accession to) international treaties

1. The Parliament of Georgia shall review and by a majority vote of the total number of its members make a respective decision in the form of a resolution on the international treaty submitted for ratification (or for accession to it) by the Government of Georgia, and if the President of Georgia has concluded an international treaty, or if, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia, by the President of Georgia in agreement with the Government of Georgia and with a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia.

2. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall, based on the resolution by the Parliament of Georgia for ratification of (or accession to) an international treaty, issue a ratification instrument signed by the Prime Minister of Georgia, and if the President of Georgia has concluded an international treaty, or if, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia, the President of Georgia shall issue the above ratification instrument with a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia. The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall certify the ratification instrument.

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Article 18 – Approval of (or accession to) the international treaties not subject to ratification

The Government of Georgia by its ordinance, and if, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia, the President of Georgia by an edict issued in agreement with the Government of Georgia and requiring a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia, shall make a decision on approving (or acceding to) the international treaty that is not subject to ratification (or be acceded to) by the Parliament of Georgia and that requires domestic procedures to be performed for it to become effective.

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Article 19 - Making changes and addenda to normative acts of Georgia based on international treaties

1. Before resolving to be bound by an international treaty, the Parliament of Georgia shall, if necessary, review and decide within its competence on making changes and addenda to a respective normative act of Georgia.

2. Before resolving to be bound by an international treaty, the President of Georgia shall, if necessary, review within his/her competence and decide on making changes and addenda to a respective normative act of Georgia.

Article 20 - Temporary application of international treaties by Georgia

If an international treaty provides for temporary application of the treaty in whole or some of its provisions, or the parties have agreed on that, Georgia shall apply the treaty as of its entry into force.

Article 21 - Compliance of international treaties of Georgia with the Constitution of Georgia

1. If an authorised subject enters a constitutional appeal to the Constitutional Court of Georgia before an international treaty is recognised as binding, the Constitutional Court of Georgia shall make a decision on constitutionality of the international treaty.

2. If an appeal has been entered to the Constitutional Court of Georgia, reviewing the topic of Georgia being bound by a respective international treaty before the Constitutional Court of Georgia makes its decision shall be inadmissible.

3. If the Constitutional Court determines the international treaty to be incompliant with the Constitution of Georgia, the above treaty may be recognised as binding for Georgia only after the respective changes are made to the Constitution in accordance with the established procedure.

Article 22 - Reservation to international treaties

1. A reservation may be made when signing, ratifying, approving or acceding to an international treaty by observing terms of the treaty and in compliance with the norms of international law. Making a reservation to an international treaty shall be inadmissible if the international treaty prohibits so, or if it contradicts the object and purpose of the treaty.

2. A reservation made when signing, ratifying, approving or acceding to an international treaty shall be finalised in writing and the depositary or other contracting party shall be notified about it.

3. Unless otherwise provided for by an international treaty of Georgia, a reservation made by Georgia may be waived at any time and in the same manner as it was made.

4. A state body responsible for recognising an international treaty as binding for Georgia shall accept or object to the reservation made to the international treaty of Georgia by other contracting state by observing terms of the international treaty and in compliance with the norms of international law.

Article 23 - Notification about recognising the international treaty as binding for Georgia

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia; diplomatic missions of Georgia or representations of Georgia to international organisations on the instructions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, shall carry out all necessary measures for notifying a contracting party or a depositary about recognising the international treaty as binding by Georgia.

Article 24 - Entry into force of international treaties

1. An international treaty shall enter into force for Georgia in the manner and within the period provided for by the international treaty or as agreed upon by the parties, and under this Law.

2. If the legislation of Georgia requires any domestic procedure to be conducted for an international treaty to enter into force, the treaty shall enter into force for Georgia only after the respective procedure is conducted.

Article 25 - Notifying the Government of Georgia, the President of Georgia and the Parliament of Georgia about international treaties

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall immediately notify the Government of Georgia, the President of Georgia and the Parliament of Georgia about concluding, as well as about terminating or suspending the international treaty of Georgia.

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Chapter III - Registration, Storage of the Texts and Official Publication of International Treaties of Georgia

Article 26 - Unified state register for registering international treaties of Georgia

1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall maintain records of the international treaties of Georgia and shall register them.

2. The text of an international treaty shall be forwarded to the Legislative Herald of Georgia for publication, within ten days after the treaty comes into force.

Law of Georgia No 1882 of 22 October 2009 – LHG I, No 33, 9.11.2009, Art. 204

Article 27 - Registration of international treaties with international organisations

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall ensure registration of the effective for Georgia international treaties with the Secretariat of the United Nations and other bodies of international organisations.

Article 28 – Storage of the text of international treaties

1. The original international treaty (a certified copy, official translation) shall be deposited with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia within 15 days after its signature.

2. The original treaty must be enclosed with the details of its signatories and, if necessary, with documents evidencing their powers.

Article 29 - Performing depositary function and communication with other depositaries

1. If the depositary function is assigned to Georgia under an international treaty, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall perform this function.

2. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall maintain correspondence with foreign state bodies, international organisations or their head officials who act as depositaries with respect to multilateral treaties.

Article 30 - Official publication of international treaties of Georgia

1. The international treaty the Parliament of Georgia has expressed its consent to recognising the treaty as binding for Georgia, after it comes into force, shall be published in the Legislative Herald of Georgia at the request of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia.

2. The international treaty the President of Georgia has expressed his/her consent to recognising the treaty as binding for Georgia, after it comes into force, shall be published in the Legislative Herald of Georgia and in the Collection of Edicts and Decrees of the President of Georgia at the request of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia.

3. The international treaty the expression of consent by the Parliament of Georgia and by the President of Georgia to recognising it as binding for Georgia is not required, after it comes into force, shall be published in the Legislative Herald of Georgia at the request of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia.

4. Publication of all international treaties of Georgia in the Collection of International Treaties of Georgia shall be mandatory.

5. If one of the authentic texts of an international treaty is prepared in Georgian language, the treaty shall be published in Georgian language.

6. If the authentic texts of an international treaty are prepared only in foreign languages, the treaty shall be published in one of the foreign languages with an official Georgian translation attached to it.

Law of Georgia No 2886 of 14 April 2006 – LHG I, No 10, 28.4.2006, Art. 73

Law of Georgia No 1882 of 22 October 2009 – LHG I, No 33, 9.11.2009, Art. 204

Chapter IV - Execution of International Treaties of Georgia

Article 31 - Execution of international treaties of Georgia

1. An international treaty of Georgia shall be subject to execution in good faith under the terms of the treaty, the norms of international law, the Constitution of Georgia, this Law, and other normative acts of Georgia.

2. Before an international treaty comes into force, Georgia shall, considering the respective norms of international law, refrain from performing actions that would defeat the object and purpose of the treaty.

3. Georgia shall execute an international treaty from the moment it comes into force.

Article 32 - Ensuring the execution of international treaties

1. The Government of Georgia, the President of Georgia and the Parliament of Georgia shall take measures for ensuring the execution of international treaties of Georgia.

2. A Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia, the issues under an international treaty being within their competence, shall ensure the obligations under the treaty are implemented by Georgia, shall observe the rights of Georgia provided for by the treaty are protected and the respective obligations of other parties to the treaty are carried out.

3. A Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia shall be obliged to inform the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia about execution of an international treaty.

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Law of Georgia No 4645 of 16 December 2015 – website, 28.12.2015

Article 33 - Supervision over execution of international treaties of Georgia

1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall have overall supervision over execution of international treaties of Georgia.

2. Central executive bodies of Georgia shall be obliged to give complete information to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia about execution of international treaties.

3. Central executive bodies of Georgia shall be obliged to immediately inform the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia when other parties to an international treaty of Georgia violate their obligations.

Article 34 - Measures applied when other parties violate international treaties of Georgia

If other parties to an international treaty of Georgia violate their obligations, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, or other Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia, in agreement with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, shall submit proposals for taking necessary measures to the Government of Georgia, in accordance with the norms of international law and of the treaty itself. If, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia, the Government of Georgia shall forward the proposals received from the Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia to the President of Georgia.

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Law of Georgia No 4645 of 16 December 2015 – website, 28.12.2015

Chapter IV¹ Correcting the Translation of International Treaties

Law of Georgia No 2886 of 14 April 2006 – LHG I, No 10, 28.4.2006, Art. 73

Article 34¹ - Proposal for correction of translation of international treaties of Georgia

1. If a discrepancy is detected between the officially certified Georgian translation of an international treaty of Georgia and its authentic text in a foreign language, a Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia shall submit a proposal for correcting the translation of the international treaty of Georgia to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia.

2. In the case provided for by paragraph 1 of this article, the Translation Bureau shall make corrections to the Georgian translation and shall officially certify the translation corrected.

3. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall submit to the Government of Georgia and to the President of Georgia the proposal under this Article for correcting the translation of the international treaty the Government of Georgia, or the President of Georgia, in agreement with the Government of Georgia and with a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia, has expressed consent to recognising it as binding for Georgia.

4. The Government of Georgia, and if, under the Constitution of Georgia, concluding a treaty falls within powers of the President of Georgia, the President of Georgia, in agreement with the Government of Georgia and with a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia, shall submit to the Parliament of Georgia the proposal for correcting the translation of the international treaty the Parliament of Georgia has expressed its consent to recognising it as binding for Georgia.

5. The authentic text of the treaty in a foreign language and its corrected and officially certified Georgian translation must be attached to a proposal for correcting the translation of an international treaty.

Law of Georgia No 2886 of 14 April 2006 – LHG I, No 10, 28.4.2006, Art. 73

Law of Georgia No 5790 of 13 March 2012 – website, 21.3.2012

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Law of Georgia No 4645 of 16 December 2015 – website, 28.12.2015

Article 34² - Decision on correcting the translation of international treaties

1. The Parliament of Georgia, by a majority vote of the total number of its members shall make a decision in the form of a resolution on correcting the translation of an international treaty of Georgia the Parliament of Georgia has expressed its consent to recognising as binding for Georgia.

2. The Government of Georgia by an ordinance, or the President of Georgia, in agreement with the Government of Georgia, by an edict requiring a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia, shall make a decision on correcting the translation of an international treaty the Government of Georgia or the President of Georgia respectively has expressed consent to recognising as binding for Georgia.

3. The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall make a decision in the form of an order on correcting the translation of an international treaty he/she has expressed consent to recognising as binding for Georgia.

Law of Georgia No 2886 of 14 April 2006 – LHG I, No 10, 28.4.2006, Art. 73

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Article 34³ - Implications of correcting the translation of international treaties of Georgia

Correcting the translation of an international treaty of Georgia shall not affect the rights and obligations of Georgia having arisen from the treaty.

Law of Georgia No 2886 of 14 April 2006 – LHG I, No 10, 28.4.2006, Art. 73

Article 34⁴ - Notification about correcting the translation of international treaties of Georgia

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall notify the Government of Georgia about correcting the translation of an international treaty of Georgia; and in the cases provided for by the Constitution of Georgia and this Law, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall notify the President of Georgia, the Parliament of Georgia, and the Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia responsible for executing the international treaty about correcting the translation of the treaty.

Law of Georgia No 2886 of 14 April, 2006 – LHG I, No 10, 28.4.2006, Art. 73

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Law of Georgia No 4645 of 16 December 2015 – website, 28.12.2015

Article 34⁵ - Registration and publication of the corrected text of translation of international treaties of Georgia

1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall forward the corrected text of translation of an international treaty of Georgia to the Legislative Herald of Georgia for publication under Article 26 of this Law.

2. The corrected text of translation of an international treaty of Georgia shall be officially published as determined by Article 30 of this Law.

Law of Georgia No 2886 of 14 April 2006 – LHG I, No 10, 28.4.2006, Art. 73

Law of Georgia No 1882 of 22 October 2009 – LHG I, No 33, 9.11.2009, Art. 204

Chapter V - Termination or Suspension of International Treaties of Georgia

Article 35 - Proposals for termination or suspension of international treaties of Georgia

1. A Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia shall submit its substantiated proposal for terminating or suspending the international treaty to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia.

2. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall submit the proposal under this article for terminating or suspending the international treaty the Parliament of Georgia or the Government of Georgia has expressed consent to recognising as binding for Georgia, to the Parliament of Georgia and to the Government of Georgia. If the President of Georgia, in agreement with the Government of Georgia and with a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia has expressed the above consent, the Government of Georgia shall forward the proposal for terminating or suspending the international treaty to the President of Georgia.

3. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall submit an offer by a foreign state or international organisation on terminating or suspending an international treaty to the Government of Georgia in the form of a proposal as determined by this article. If the President of Georgia has concluded an international treaty in agreement with the Government of Georgia and with a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia, the Government of Georgia shall forward the proposal received from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia to the President of Georgia.

4. A proposal for terminating or suspending the international treaty of Georgia the Parliament of Georgia has expressed its consent to recognising as binding for Georgia, shall be submitted to the Parliament of Georgia by the Government of Georgia; and if the President of Georgia has concluded an international treaty, the above proposal shall be submitted to the Parliament of Georgia by the President of Georgia in agreement with the Government of Georgia requiring a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia.

5. A proposal for terminating or suspending an international treaty must contain: a certified copy of the original treaty (in Georgian); the report of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia on possible foreign policy implications of terminating or suspending the treaty; the report by the Ministry of Justice of Georgia on possible legal implications of terminating or suspending the treaty; the report by the Ministry of Finance of Georgia on possible financial and economic implications, as well as a report of a respective Ministry of Georgia/the State Security Service of Georgia.

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Law of Georgia No 4645 of 16 December 2015 – website, 28.12.2015

Article 36 - Preliminary review of international treaties submitted to the Parliament of Georgia for termination or suspension

The Foreign Affairs Committee of the Parliament of Georgia, if necessary, together with other committees of the Parliament of Georgia, shall hold a preliminary review of the international treaty submitted to the Parliament of Georgia for termination or suspension, and shall make a respective conclusion.

Article 37 - Decision on termination or suspension of international treaties of Georgia

1. The Parliament of Georgia, by a majority vote of the total number of its members, shall make a decision in the form of a resolution on terminating or suspending the international treaty of Georgia the Parliament of Georgia has expressed its consent to recognising as binding for Georgia.

2. The Government of Georgia by a decree, or the President of Georgia, in agreement with the Government of Georgia, by an edict requiring a countersignature of the Prime Minister of Georgia, shall make a decision on terminating or suspending the international treaty the Government of Georgia or the President of Georgia respectively has expressed consent to recognising as binding for Georgia.

3. The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall make a decision in the form of an order on terminating or suspending the international treaty he/she has expressed consent to recognising as binding for Georgia.

Law of Georgia No 1053 of 6 September 2013 – website, 23.9.2013

Article 38 - Implications of termination of international treaties of Georgia

Under the norms of international law, termination of an international treaty of Georgia, unless otherwise provided for by the treaty, or unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties to the treaty, shall release Georgia from any obligation to execute the treaty later on, and shall not affect the rights and obligations of Georgia, or its legal status having established as a result of the treaty execution until it was terminated.

Article 39 - Implications of suspension of international treaties of Georgia

1. Under the norms of international law, suspension of an international treaty, unless otherwise provided for by the treaty, or unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties to the treaty, shall release Georgia during the suspension period from obligation to execute the treaty towards the parties to the treaty it has been suspended with respect to. The above suspension shall not affect the legal relations that have been defined under the treaty between Georgia and other parties to the treaty.

2. During suspension period of an international treaty, Georgia shall refrain from carrying out the actions that may impede resumption of the treaty.

Article 40 - Official notification about termination or suspension of international treaties of Georgia

1. A decision on terminating or suspending an international treaty of Georgia shall be published as provided for Article 30.

2. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia shall officially notify a party to a treaty, or a depositary about terminating or suspending an international treaty of Georgia.

Chapter VI - Final Provisions

Article 41 – Enactment of the Law

1. This Law shall be enacted upon publication.

2. The Law of the Republic of Georgia on Conclusion, Ratification, Performance and Denunciation of International Treaties of the Republic of Georgia of 11 February 1993 shall be considered invalid upon enacting this Law (Gazette of the Parliament of Georgia, No 4, 1993, Art. 22).

President of Georgia                                                                                                                                              Eduard Shevardnadze

Tbilisi

16 October 1997

No 934-S