The Attorney General of the Republic of Vanuatu, Arnold Kiel Loughman presented the oral submissions before the International Court of Justice in the Advisory Proceedings on the Obligations of States in respect of Climate Change on 2 December 2024.

As the Attorney General of Vanuatu, my foremost duty is to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law. Our Constitution is a covenant with our people, guaranteeing fundamental rights and freedoms and committing to the protection of our way of life for present and future generations. Our Constitution also establishes our sovereignty, which we regained in 1980 following more than a century of colonial rule. 

Yet I stand before you with a heavy heart. The rights enshrined in our Constitution are being undermined—and not from within, but from the acts and omissions of certain States beyond our borders. We know what the cause of climate change is: a conduct of specific States, which was explained by Special Envoy Regenvanu.. Vanuatu’s contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions is negligible, and yet we are among those most affected by climate change. 

As the principal legal officer of my country, I have come before this Court because domestic legal remedies are unable to address a crisis of this scope and magnitude. I have come to ask you to uphold the rule of law. Under international law, States have obligations: to act with due diligence; to prevent significant harm to the environment; to reduce their emissions and provide support to countries like mine; to protect human rights of present and future generations; to protect and preserve the marine environment; and to respect the fundamental right of my people to self-determination in our own land. The failure by a small number of large emitting States to fulfill these obligations constitutes an internationally wrongful act, triggering legal consequences under the international law of State responsibility. 

Each of these States, which are identified on the basis of reliable scientific evidence in Vanuatu’s submissions, has individually caused significant harm to the climate system and other parts of the environment. Together, they have caused catastrophic harm in the form of climate change and its adverse effects. In a system intended to uphold peace and security, self-determination, the enjoyment of fundamental rights and the protection of the environment, how can the conduct that has taken humanity to the brink of catastrophe, threatening the survival of entire peoples, be lawful and without consequences?

We urge the Court to affirm in the clearest terms that this conduct is in breach of the obligations of States under international law, and that such breach carries legal consequences. 

Mr President, Mme Vice-President, Members of the Court, the stakes could not be higher. The survival of my people and so many others is on the line. We trust in the wisdom of this Court to uphold the principles of international law.