A draft United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution that seeks to endorse the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ’s) July 2025 advisory opinion—which analyzed the obligations of States in respect of climate change—will come to a vote May 20. In the advisory opinion, the ICJ emphasized to the international community that cooperation on climate is an obligation, not a choice. This draft UNGA resolution, proposed by Vanuatu, aims to institutionalize the advisory opinion and set a concrete path of action and accountability.
Known as the “World Court,” the ICJ is the only international court that settles disputes between the 193 UN Member States. In response to a request from the UN General Assembly (UNGA), the ICJ issued a notable advisory opinion, or an authoritative interpretation of complex legal questions, on climate change.
The advisory opinion addressed a particularly pressing legal question: what international law requires of States in the context of climate change. The Court unanimously held that climate change treaties, environmental treaties, international human rights law, and customary international law—those uncodified general and consistent practices among nations that have been recognized as “law” over time—create requirements for States to ensure the protection of the climate system and other parts of the environment from greenhouse gas emissions. The Court also unanimously held that when a State does not meet these requirements, it commits an internationally wrongful act with concrete legal consequences.
The resolution, set for a vote by UN Member States this week, recognizes the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement as the primary international and intergovernmental fora for negotiating a global response to climate change. It does not attribute responsibility to any state, nor does it create new obligations. Instead, it calls on states to comply with their existing obligations as clarified by the ICJ, and it requests the creation of a report that contains recommendations to advance States’ compliance with all obligations in relation to the ICJ’s opinion.
If countries decide to adopt the UNGA resolution, it could offer a political signal to align climate action with the legal obligations clarified in the advisory opinion, but it is not the only potential pathway to do so. States could also consider seeking opportunities to recognize the ICJ’s advisory opinion, due to its emphasis on their obligations under the Paris Agreement and UNFCCC, through the UNFCCC Conferences of the Parties (COPs).
At the last COP, some States hoped for a strong reference to the advisory opinion in a COP decision while others maintained a hard “red line” against referencing it. In negotiations on loss and damage, for example, some negotiating groups brought the advisory opinion into discussions in an effort to secure a reference in a decision coming out of Belém. Other negotiating groups opposed these efforts, with some States asserting that the ICJ’s advisory opinion is non-binding on governments, not representative of all States’ views, and separate from the climate negotiations.
States’ obligation to cooperate under the UNFCCC and Paris Agreement includes cooperation on COP outcomes. A key task of the COP is to review and take necessary decisions to promote the effective implementation of the UNFCCC and Paris Agreement. The UNFCCC preamble calls for the “widest possible cooperation by all countries and their participation in an effective and appropriate international response” to climate change. The ICJ advisory opinion asserts that under the UNFCCC, States must cooperate on mitigation of, and adaptation to, climate change impacts, in addition to providing financial assistance, technology transfer, and other forms of support to countries that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change, to assist them in meeting their commitments under the UNFCCC.
Moreover, the Paris Agreement requires States to “take stock” of its implementation every five years in order to assess collective progress in meeting the Paris Agreement’s purpose and long-term goals, a process known as the global stocktake (GST). The first GST concluded at COP in December 2023 with the adoption of a decision that emphasized the importance of enhanced international cooperation for addressing climate change, as provided in Article 14, paragraph 3 of the Paris Agreement. Therefore, the duty to cooperate plays an important role in the implementation of the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement, generating a clear connection between COP negotiations and the ICJ’s final decision.
As multilateralism faces growing pressure—including from international conflicts, the current energy crisis, and insufficient finance for vulnerable countries—reaffirming respect for international law and the Court is increasingly important. The ICJ held that “[c]o-operation is not a matter of choice for States but a pressing need and a legal obligation.” Whether through an UNGA resolution, COP decision, or another forum, States should seek opportunities to recognize the ICJ’s advisory opinion. They should do so either in word (such as recognition in decision text) or deed (by following through on their climate commitments) as it underscores the importance of their obligations under the Paris Agreement and UNFCCC.
