For information only - not an official document

UNIS/L/142
8 July 2010

Dominican Republic and Turkey Accede to United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG)

75th and 76th Countries to Become Parties to the Convention

VIENNA, 8 July (UN Information Service) - With their accession to the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG), the Dominican Republic and Turkey become the 75th and 76th State Parties to the Convention, respectively. The Convention will enter into force for the Dominican Republic on 1 July and for Turkey on 1 August 2011.

The United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods provides an equitable and modern uniform framework for the contract of sale, which is the backbone of international trade in all countries, irrespective of their legal tradition or level of economic development. The CISG is therefore considered to be one of the core conventions in international trade law.

At the ceremony that took place during the Commission session in New York on 7 July, the Deputy Permanent Representative of Turkey to the United Nations, Fazlı Çorman said that the development of international trade on the basis of equality and mutual benefit was an important element of promoting friendly relations among states and as such, improvement of the legal framework in which international trade operates was a fundamental aspect of that development process. He also mentioned that the CISG, by providing modern uniform rules on contract for the international sale of goods, contributed to the removal of legal barriers in international trade and thus served the development of international trade law. Mr. Çorman concluded by calling on other states that were not yet parties to accede to the Convention.

The Convention, which has been adopted by a large number of major trading countries, establishes a comprehensive code of legal rules governing the formation of contracts for the international sale of goods, the obligations of the buyer and seller, remedies for breach of contract and other aspects of the contract. Further information on the CISG is available on the UNCITRAL website.

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The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) is the core legal body of the United Nations system in the field of international trade law. Its mandate is to remove legal obstacles to international trade by progressively modernizing and harmonizing trade law. It prepares legal texts in a number of key areas such as international commercial dispute settlement, electronic commerce, insolvency, security interests, sale of goods, transport law, procurement and infrastructure development. UNCITRAL also provides technical assistance to law reform activities, including assisting Member States to review and assess their law reform needs and to draft the legislation required to implement UNCITRAL texts. The UNCITRAL Secretariat is located in Vienna, Austria, and maintains a website at www.uncitral.org.

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For information contact:

Jenny Clift
Senior Legal Officer
UNCITRAL Secretariat
Email: jenny.clift@uncitral.org