Each page of the Historic Archives is devoted to a particular legal instrument. The heading of the page contains the title of the instrument, as well as information on the place and date of adoption.

On the introductory page of each instrument, horizontal tabs give access to related written material and audiovisual materials.

The written material is presented by means of various tabs at the top of the page for each instrument: Introductory Note, Procedural History, Documents, Status (as appropriate).

Introduction

The introductory notes have been prepared by eminent international law scholars or practitioners with special expertise on the subjects, describing the historic context in which the legal instrument was adopted, significant developments in the negotiating history, a summary of key provisions, and an overview of the influence of the instrument on subsequent legal developments.

The notes are being translated into the six official languages of the United Nations and are posted as soon as they are available.

Each note is available in a PDF version to facilitate printing and off-screen reading.

Procedural History

The procedural history notes have been prepared by the Codification Division of the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs. They provide brief overviews of the negotiation and adoption of each instrument.

Documents

The Documents section, which is compiled by the Codification Division, contains information on select preparatory documents. The preparatory documents are presented in chronological order and include information on relevant resolutions, draft texts, meeting reports and verbatim or summary records of the proceedings. Links to electronic versions of the documents are provided when available.

Status

Information on the status of each treaty or international agreement that is included in the Historic Archives is made available through a link to the websites of the respective depositaries (when available).

The audiovisual materials have been selected and prepared by the Codification Division.

The audiovisual materials included in the Historic Archives consist of select film footage, audio recordings, interviews and photos, relating to meetings or diplomatic conferences at which the legal instruments were negotiated and adopted or to other related events. The selection of audiovisual materials is based on their relevance, availability and the quality of the original source. Some entries include recordings of full meetings, others include only excerpts. A deliberate decision has been made to respect the integrity of the original source of the material included in the Historic Archives. Users should be advised that the quality of the original source may greatly vary depending on the time period of the recordings. Unless otherwise indicated, United Nations archives are the source of all audiovisual materials in the Historic Archives section.

The audiovisual materials are presented in three separate sections: Video Resources, Audio Resources and Photo Resources.

Video Resources

The film footage is presented in chronological order. The film may generally be viewed in its full version (not necessarily of the meeting but of the available excerpt) or statement by statement. The statements are available in the language they were originally delivered (at times with simultaneous English interpretation) or in English through interpretation. The language in which the statement was given is indicated as well as the approximate length of each video segment.

The full length video versions are fully accessible on all devices but the individual excerpts are available in Flash format. To install Flash Player, please go to http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/.

Audio Resources

Audio recordings are used, in particular, when film footage for a particular instrument is partial or not available. The audio recordings are presented in chronological order. The recording may generally be played in its full version (not necessarily of the meeting but of the available excerpt) or statement by statement. The statements are available in the language they were originally delivered or in English through interpretation. The language in which the statement was given is indicated as well as the approximate length of each audio segment.

The audio recordings are available in Flash format. To install Flash Player, please go to http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/.

Photo Resources

The Photo section contains select photos relating to the adoption of the legal instrument or to its specific subject matter. The photos are listed in chronological order and may be viewed in a larger version by clicking on them.

It should be noted that in order to preserve the accuracy of the materials, the historical names of the States at the time in question have been retained, even though the names of the States may have subsequently changed.