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Case concerning the delimitation of maritime boundary between Guinea-Bissau and Senegal

Year (case):
1989
Year (treaty):
1985
Time period:
1950-2000
Jurisdiction/region:
West Africa
State/territory:
Guinea-Bissau
Senegal
Document language:
English
Dispute resolution method:
Arbitration
Classification:
Inter-State
Topics:
Treaties
Jus cogens
TerritoryOccupation Uti possidetis
Sovereignty Sovereign jurisdiction
TerritoryTerritorial disputeRiver boundary Maritime boundary
Territory Territorial dispute
Legal instrument:
Special agreement
Presiding or sole arbitrator:
Julio A. Barberis (Argentina)
Other members of tribunal/commission:
Mohammed Bedjaoui (Algeria);André Gros (France)
Nationality of arbitrator:
Algeria
Argentina
France
Citation:
Case concerning the delimitation of maritime boundary between Guinea-Bissau and Senegal (1989) XX RIAA 119
Link to source:
https://legal.un.org/docs/?path=../riaa/cases/vol_XX/119-213.pdf
Description:
The case concerns a maritime boundary dispute, originating from the Franco-Portuguese exchange of letters dated 26 April 1960, which purported to delimit the maritime boundary between Senegal (then under French administration) and Portuguese Guinea. Upon its independence in 1973, Guinea-Bissau challenged the validity and opposability for the 1960 letter, arguing that it was concluded without proper authority and never ratified under Portuguese or colonial law.

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