Pub.L. 107-107 ...

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States, these procedures are those approved by the Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission.
    Article V, paragraph 1, describes the geographical 
locations within which damage must be suffered in order to 
qualify a claimant for compensation from the international 
supplementary fund, provided a Party's courts have jurisdiction 
under Article XIII. Nuclear damage is covered if suffered: 
within the territory of a Party, or in or above the EEZ or the 
continental shelf of a Party in connection with the 
exploitation or exploration of the natural resources of that 
zone or shelf. Also covered is nuclear damage suffered in or 
above maritime areas beyond the territorial sea of any Party 
(but outside the territorial sea of any non-Party) where the 
damage is suffered (a) by a national of a Party; (b) on board 
or by a ship flying the flag of a Party; (c) on or by an 
aircraft registered in a Party; or (d) on or by an artificial 
island, installation or structure under the jurisdiction of a 
Party. Paragraph 2 permits a state to assimilate persons having 
their habitual residence in its territory as its nationals for 
the purposes of paragraph 1(b)(ii) (concerning treatment of a 
national of a Party damaged while on the high seas). Paragraph 
3 clarifies that the term ``national of a Contracting Party'' 
includes juridical and natural persons, as well as the Party 
itself or any of its constituent subdivisions.
    Article VI obligates the Party whose courts have 
jurisdiction over claims arising from a nuclear incident to 
notify the other Parties of the incident if it appears that the 
damage caused by the incident exceeds, or is likely to exceed, 
its first tier amount and that contributions to the 
international supplementary fund may be required. Following 
such notification, Parties are required to make arrangements 
for determining which procedures shall apply for making funds 
available, if subsequently required.
    Article VII requires the Party whose courts have 
jurisdiction, once it has given notice pursuant to Article VI, 
to request the other Parties to make available funds for the 
international supplementary fund (up to the maximum amount 
required from each Party under the contribution formula) when 
and to the extent required without any restriction and gives 
that Party exclusive competence to disburse those funds.
    Article VIII sets up a system for establishing a list of 
nuclear reactors in each Party for the purpose of calculating 
the contributions to the international supplementary fund in 
the event an incident occurs.
    Paragraph 1 obligates a state when it deposits its 
instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession 
to communicate to the Depository a list of its reactors 
containing the necessary particulars (i.e., the thermal 
capacity) of those reactors. Paragraph 2 requires Parties to 
communicate promptly modifications to their list of reactors. 
When a reactor is to be added, the notification must be made at 
least 3 months in advance of the introduction of nuclear 
material into the reactor. Paragraph 3 permits other Parties to 
challenge particulars contained in the list submitted under 
paragraph 1 or subsequent modifications thereof and to submit 
any unresolved differences to the CSC's dispute resolution 
provisions discussed below. Paragraph 4 obligates the IAEA to 
maintain, update and circulate the list on an annual basis. 
Paragraph 5 obligates the IAEA to notify Parties of 
communications and objections it receives with respect to this 
list.
    Article IX, paragraph 1, requires each Party to enact 
legislation permitting it or other Parties to the extent they 
have made contributions to the international supplementary fund 
to benefit from any right of recourse (a right to recover 
damages from a third party) enjoyed by the liable operator. The 
implementing legislation to be submitted separately to Congress 
will contain a provision giving effect to this requirement in 
the CSC with respect to situations where the Price-Anderson Act 
does not apply but there is a right of recourse. (There is no 
right of recourse under the Price-Anderson Act.) Paragraph 2 
permits the Party of the liable operator to provide for the 
recovery from the operator of any public funds made available 
to compensate damage from a nuclear incident if the damage 
results from fault on the part of the operator. Paragraph 3 
permits the Party whose courts have jurisdiction over claims 
arising from an incident under the CSC to exercise the rights 
of recourse provided under paragraphs 1 and 2.
    Article X, paragraph 1, provides that the system of 
disbursements of the Party whose courts have jurisdiction shall 
be applied to all funds made available under the CSC. Paragraph 
2 provides that the Party whose courts have jurisdiction shall 
not require claimants to bring separate proceedings depending 
on the source of the funds provided (i.e., whether they came 
from first tier funds, the second tier comprised of the 
international supplementary fund, or third tier funds provided 
under the law of the ``installation state'') and that Parties 
may intervene in the proceeding against the operator liable. 
Paragraph 3 guarantees that no Party will be asked to 
contribute to the international supplementary fund if required 
first tier funds are sufficient to cover all claims.
    Article XI, paragraph 1, stipulates the allocation of the 
international supplementary fund. Subparagraph 1(a) allocates 
one half of the fund for the compensation of damage in all 
Parties without differentiation. Subparagraph 1(b) makes the 
other half of the fund available for the compensation of 
transboundary damage. Subparagraph 1(c) provides that if the 
funds in the first tier are less than the equivalent of 300 
million SDRs (i.e., if the ``installation state'' is benefiting 
from the 10-year phase in when the incident occurs), the 
proportion of the international supplementary fund available 
for transboundary damage is proportionately increased.
    Paragraph 2 deals with the special case when a Party has 
exercised its option under Article III(1)(a) and has declared a 
first tier amount that is 600 million SDRs or greater. In that 
case, the allocation to transboundary damage is eliminated and 
the entire international supplementary fund is available on a 
non-differentiated basis.
    Article XII deals with the relation between the CSC and 
other existing or possible future conventions in the field of 
nuclear liability. Paragraph 1 allows Parties to the Vienna 
Convention or Paris Convention to invoke their rights under 
those conventions against other Parties to them that are also 
party to the CSC in order to accumulate public funds that they 
may be called upon to supply to the CSC's international 
supplementary fund. Paragraph 2 permits Parties to make 
provisions for a third tier of compensation of nuclear damage 
above and beyond the first tier amount and the international 
supplementary fund should they so choose (e.g., the provisions 
under the Price-Anderson Act that would result in additional 
compensation with respect to a U.S. accident once the first 
tier and the international supplementary fund had been 
exhausted). Where availability of the third tier under a 
Party's domestic law would otherwise depend on reciprocity from 
a Party, lack of reciprocity may not be used to deny 
compensation to a Party that has no nuclear installations on 
its territory. (The Price-Anderson Act does not require 
reciprocity in any case, and, because Price-Anderson makes the 
U.S. third tier open to all, U.S. citizens would meet 
reciprocity requirements of any Party that mandates them.) 
Paragraph 3 makes clear that Parties are free to enter into 
regional or other agreements for the purpose of accumulating 
funds to satisfy their obligation to provide first tier funds 
or to provide other additional funds for the compensation of 
nuclear damage. Notice of an intention to enter into such 
agreements must be given to the other Parties.
    Article XIII determines which Party's courts shall have 
jurisdiction over claims brought under the CSC and how 
judgments rendered by the courts of one Party are to be 
recognized by those of another. Paragraph 1 states the general 
rule that (vis-a-vis the courts of other Parties) only the 
courts of the Party within which the incident occurs shall have 
jurisdiction. Paragraph 2 deals with the exceptional case where 
the incident occurs within a maritime area coextensive with an 
EEZ (i.e., an area extending seaward up to 200 nautical miles 
from the baselines from which a state's territorial sea is 
measured) that has been or could be established by a Party and 
that has been notified to the Depositary. (The United States 
will notify the Depositary of its EEZ upon deposit of its 
instrument of ratification.) Under this paragraph, the courts 
of the coastal Parties exercise exclusive jurisdiction vis-a-
vis the courts of other Parties. Parties to the Paris or Vienna 
Convention are permitted to follow the corresponding 
jurisdictional provisions of those Conventions with respect to 
non-Parties to the CSC. Paragraph 3 grants exclusive 
jurisdiction to the courts of the ``installation state'' vis-a-
vis the courts of other Parties where the incident occurs 
outside the territory of any Party and outside the maritime 
area defined in paragraph 2. Paragraph 4 requires the Parties 
involved to determine by agreement which of their courts will 
have exclusive jurisdiction where jurisdiction would lie with 
the courts of more than one Party under the foregoing rules 
(e.g., if the incident were to occur in a maritime area where 
the actual or potential economic zone claims of two or more 
Parties overlap). Paragraph 5 stipulates that once no longer 
subject to appeal, a judgment rendered under the CSC in one 
Party's courts shall be recognized in the courts of all other 
Parties, except when the judgment was obtained by fraud, the 
defendant was not given a fair opportunity to present his case, 
or where the judgment is contrary to the public policy (order 
publique) of the Party where enforcement is sought or is not in 
accord with fundamental standards of justice. Under paragraph 
6, a judgment recognized under paragraph 5 shall be enforceable 
as though it were a judgment of the courts of the Party where 
enforcement is sought and the merits shall not be subject to 
further proceedings there. Paragraph 7 extends the recognition 
of judgments to include settlements effected in accordance with 
conditions established by national legislaiton that are paid 
out of the international supplementary fund.
    As with similar jurisdictional provisions in earlier 
treaties submitted to the Senate for advice and consent to 
ratification, it is anticipated that the provisions of Article 
XIII would be applied without the need for further implementing 
legislation. It should be noted that, after the United States 
deposits its instrument of ratification to the CSC, the effect 
of Article XIII will be to remove jurisdiction from all U.S. 
Federal and State courts over cases concerning nuclear damage 
from a nuclear incident covered by the CSC except to the extent 
provided in the CSC. Where jurisdiction would lie with courts 
in the United States under the CSC, however, the CSC will not 
affect the allocation of jurisdiction between State and Federal 
courts within the United States.
    Article XIV determines which law shall be applied by the 
competent court to cases arising under the CSC. Paragraph 1 
stipulates that the Vienna Convention, the Paris Convention, or 
the Annex to the CSC, as appropriate, shall apply exclusively 
to a nuclear incident. Paragraph 2 stipulates that the law 
applied shall be that of the competent court, subject to the 
provisions of the Vienna Convention, the Paris Convention, or 
the Annex, whichever applies pursuant to paragraph 1.
    Article XV provides that the CSC does not affect the rights 
and obligations of a Party under public international law. 
Article XVI deals with dispute settlement. Paragraph 1 
obligates the Parties involved in a dispute over the 
interpretation or application of the CSC to consult with a view 
to settling the dispute by negotiation or other peaceful means. 
Paragraph 2 permits any Party to a dispute to submit it after 6 
months of consultations to binding arbitration or to the 
International Court of Justice. Paragraph 3 permits a Party to 
opt out of either of the dispute settlement procedures provided 
in paragraph 2 by declaring, at the time of ratification, 
acceptance, approval or accession, that it does not consider 
itself bound by either or both of the dispute settlement 
procedures provided for in paragraph 2. I recommend therefore 
that that the U.S. instrument of ratification be subject to the 
following declaration:

          As provided for in paragraph 3 of Article XVI, the 
        United States of America declares that it does not 
        consider itself bound by either of the dispute 
        settlement procedures provided for in paragraph 2 of 
        that Article, but reserves the right in a particular 
        case to agree to follow the dispute settlement 
        procedures of the Convention or any other procedures.

    Paragraph 4 permits a Party that has taken advantage of the 
option presented under paragraph 3 to reverse its decision at 
any time.
    Pursuant to Article XVII the CSC was opened for signature 
by all states on September 29, 1997, and it remains open for 
signature until its entry into force.
    Article XVIII deals with ratification, acceptance and 
approval of the CSC. Under paragraph 1, instruments of 
ratification, acceptance or approval may be accepted by the 
Depositary only from a state that is party to the Vienna 
Convention or the Paris Convention, or that declares that its 
national law complies with the provisions of the Annex, and 
provides further that such state, if it has a nuclear 
installation on its territory, must also be party to the 1994 
Convention on Nuclear Safety. Paragraph 2 designates the 
Director General of the IAEA as the CSC's Depositary. Paragraph 
3 requires each Party to provide the Depositary with a copy of 
its national legislation implementing the Vienna or Paris 
Convention or the provisions of the Annex, as well as any 
notification pursuant to Article III(1)(a) (designating a first 
tier amount greater than 300 million SDRs), Article XI(2) 
(indicating a first tier amount not less than 600 million 
SDRs), or Article III(1)(a)(ii) (taking advantage of the phase-
in of the minimum national compensation amount). The Depositary 
is required to circulate these notifications to the Parties.
    Article XIX deals with accession. It applies the same 
criteria and provisions that are applied by Article XVIII to 
states that ratify, accept, or approve the CSC to states that 
accede to it (i.e., states that do not sign the CSC, but seek 
to become party after its entry into force).
    Article XX states that the CSC will enter into force on the 
90th day following the date on which at least five states 
representing among them at least 400,000 units of installed 
nuclear capacity have deposited an instrument of ratification, 
acceptance, or approval and that the CSC will enter into force 
for any state which subsequently ratifies accepts, approves, or 
accedes to the CSC 90 days following the deposit of its 
instrument. Article XXI permits any Party to denounce the CSC 
upon 1 year's notice.
    Article XXII deals with cessation. Under paragraph 1, if a 
Party notifies the Depositary that it has ceased to be party to 
the Vienna or Paris Convention, it shall cease to be party to 
the CSC unless it notifies the Depositary that its national 
legislation complies with the provisions of the Annex and has 
provided the Depositary with a copy of that legislation. Under 
paragraph 2, a Party whose national law no longer complies with 
the provisions of the Annex and which is not party to the 
Vienna or Paris Convention ceases to be party to the CSC.
    Under paragraph 3, any Party having a nuclear installation 
on its territory which notifies the Depositary that it has 
ceased to be party to the 1994 Convention on Nuclear Safety 
ceases to be party to the CSC.
    Pursuant to Article XXIII, the CSC continues to apply to 
any nuclear damage caused by a nuclear incident which occurs 
before a Party's denunciation or cessation becomes effective.
    Article XXIV authorizes the Depositary to convene, after 
consultations with the Parties, a conference for the purpose of 
revising or amending the CSC, and requires the Depositary to 
convene such a conference at the request of not less than one-
third of the Parties.
    Article XXV deals with amendment of the CSC by simplified 
procedure. Under paragraph 1, the Depositary is required to 
convene a meeting of the Parties on the request of at least 
one-third of them for the limited purpose of amending the 
amounts stipulated in Article III(1)(a) and (b) (the first tier 
amount, the minimum level at which a state may phase in its 
first tier amount, and the amount of the international 
supplementary fund yielded by application of the contribution 
formula set out in Article IV) and the categories of 
installations, including contributions payable for them, 
referred to in Article IV(3). This reference to the categories 
of installations referred to in Article IV(3) was intended to 
allow the Parties to change the date when a nuclear reactor 
would be included or excluded from the contribution 
calculation. Under paragraph 2, amendments proposed at the 

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