CYIL vol. 14 (2023)

JAKUB HANDRLICA CYIL 14 (2023) a different intention by that State at the time of deposit of an instrument referred to in Article 20 shall be bound by the provisions of the 1963 Vienna Convention in relation to Slates which are only Parties thereto. 2. Nothing in this Protocol shall affect the obligations of a State which is a Party both to the 1963 Vienna Convention and to this Protocol with respect to a State which is a Party to the 1963 Vienna Convention but not a Party to this Protocol. Thus, the grandfathering provision guarantees a peaceful co-existence between the Contracting Parties to the Vienna Convention and the Revised Vienna Convention. 81 This grandfathering is of major importance, as in several regions, both regimes of liability to recently co-exist. In the region of Central and Eastern Europe, several states 82 participate in the regime of the Revised Vienna Convention, while the majority 83 still participate in the Vienna Convention. A very similar co-existence between the two “Viennese” liability regimes may be found in the Middle East. While Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon participate at the regime of the Vienna Convention, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have joined the regime of the Revised Vienna Convention. Also in the states of the Gulf of Guinea, both regimes of nuclear liability co-exists. 84 Having said this, one must bear in mind that several of those states who signed the Protocol to Amend the Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage have not yet ratified it. 85 One may expect that, in the next decade, these states will ratify the Protocol and enter into the regime of the Revised Vienna Convention. 86 Over the long term, it is expected that the Revised Vienna Convention will entirely replace the regime of the Vienna Convention. 3.2 The Vienna Convention and the Joint Protocol The Joint Protocol represents a “legal bridge”, connecting the liability regime of the Vienna Convention and the Revised Vienna Convention with the liability regime under the Revised Paris Convention, which currently exists in Western Europe. Therefore, the participation in the Joint Protocol is of major importance for the states of Europe, as it is highly probable that a nuclear incident occurring in one of the European states will cause consequences in this region. In this respect, one must bear in mind that while the majority of the Western European states participate in the regime of the Joint Protocol, there remain some exemptions. 87 81 See TOMINO, K. The International Framework on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage (2012) 54 Atomos, at pp. 527–528. 82 Belarus, Poland and Romania. 83 Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Russian Federation, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria etc. 84 Benin, Ghana and Niger are Contracting Parties to the Revised Vienna Convention, while Cameroon and 86 See PELZER, N. Main Features of the Revised International Regime Governing Nuclear Liability – Progress and Standstill in OECD/NEA (ed), International Nuclear Law: History, Evolution and Outlook, Paris: OECD, 2010, at pp. 382–86. 87 Belgium, Spain and the United Kingdom. Nigeria are Contracting Parties to the Vienna Convention. 85 Hungary, the Czech Republic, Lithuania and Ukraine.

310