国际法院于1945年根据《联合国宪章》设立。作为 联合国主要司法机关，国际法院是解决国家间法律争端的一个中央机构。国际法 院依其《规约》运作，《规约》是《宪章》不可分割的组成部分。国际法院取代了根据《国际联盟盟约》设立，于1922年运作，并于1946 年解散的常设国际法院。国际法院所在地为荷兰海牙。法院主要职能是依照其《规约》和国际法，裁定各国向其提交的法律争端(即 所谓“诉讼管辖权”)。法院也可就大会、安全理事会或其他经大会授权的联合 国机关和专门机构转送的法律问题提供咨询意见。

法院提供了一个和平解开外交僵局的备选办法。争端当事国进行谈判仍然是解决分歧的最佳方式。然而，谈判不一定都能取得成功。一旦谈判陷入僵局，争端就可能迅速升级。在这种情况下，接受法院管辖权就是一个宝贵且彼此可接受的解决办法。但话虽如此，法院受理案件并不阻碍继续或恢复谈判。

The International Court of Justice was established in 1945 by the United Nations Charter. It is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations and a central institution for the peaceful settlement of legal disputes between States. It functions in accordance with its Statute, which forms an integral part of the Charter. It succeeded the Permanent Court of International Justice, which was established by the Covenant of the League of Nations, was operational since 1922 and was dissolved in 1946. The seat of the International Court of Justice is in The Hague.The principal function of the Court is to decide, in accordance with its Statute and international law, legal disputes submitted to it by States (this is known as “contentious jurisdiction”. The Court also gives advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by the General Assembly, the Security Council or other United Nations organs and specialized agencies so authorized by the General Assembly.

The Court provides an option for unlocking diplomatic impasses peacefully. Negotiations between parties to a dispute remain the best way to settle differences. However, negotiations may not always prove successful. In the case of a stalemate in negotiations, a dispute may quickly escalate. In such situations, accepting the jurisdiction of the Court will offer a valuable and mutually acceptable way out. That being said, the fact that the Court is seized of a case does not prevent the parties from continuing or resuming negotiations

Notes 注释

[1] Succeed：接替; 继任; 随后出现

[2] Dissolve：解散

[3] Statute：成文法; 法令; 法规

[4] Impasse：僵局; 绝境

[5] Stalemate：僵局，僵持局面