CYIL vol. 15 (2024)

PAVEL ŠTURMA achieve the completion of the first and second reading, here it did not decide so in 2023 and this year. Instead, last year, the ILC established a Working Group and appointed Mr. August Reinisch as its Chair. However, it did not spend much time on substantive debate. This year, the Commission re-established the Working Group that had only two meetings (on 20 May and 8 July). 33 Based on the report of the Working Group, the Commission decided to establish at its seventy-sixth session (2025) a Working Group on the succession of States in respect of State responsibility for the purpose of drafting a final report; decided that the report would contain a summary of difficulties that the Commission would face if it were to continue its work; and decided to appoint Mr. Bimal N. Patel as Chair of the Working Group to be established at the seventy-sixth session of the Commission. 34 The Commission considered but decided against the continuation of its work on the topic, as members considered that the time and resources of the Commission would be more efficiently used by undertaking work on other topics. 35 This argument might be more convincing if the Commission would not spend much time on topics that are neither codification nor progressive development of international law. Similarly doubtful and not convincing is the argument based on the alleged lack of state practice, as the Commission found the topic ripe for codification both in 2016 when it included this topic in the long term programme of work and in 2017 when it was placed in the current programme of work. Despite the shorter time allocated to its 2024 session, the Commission also reconstituted the Planning Group and the Working Group on the long-term programme of work. The Commission, on the recommendation of the Working Group, decided to recommend the inclusion of two topics in the long-term programme of work. These two new topics, which syllabuses appear in the annexes I and II to the 2024 report, are: (a) compensation for damage caused by internationally wrongful acts; and (b) due diligence in international law. 3. Conclusion The seventy-fifth session of the International Law Commission was affected by the liquidity crisis of the United Nations. Therefore, its length was cut from 12 to 10 weeks only. However, this is an objective fact that occurred already several times in past. Therefore, it should not seriously impair the work of the Commission that is divided into the entire quinquennium. One can only ask the question of if it is wise, in this junction, to propose in its report that a part of the 2026 session be held in New York. 36 What may be another source of concern, however, is that the Commission itself seems to depart from the traditional tasks of the progressive development and codification of international law to some different kinds of exercise. It is evident not only from the topics on its agenda but mainly from the weight and priority given to individual topics. Of the current topics, just three can be seen as codification (including elements of progressive development). It is only the topic Immunity of State officials where the second reading of draft articles has started and could be hopefully completed next year but more realistically in 2026. Regarding

33 See Report of the ILC, ibid ., p. 98. 34 Ibid ., p. 99, para. 308. 35 Ibid ., p. 101, para. 328. 36 Ibid ., p. 133, para. 464.

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