3 The General Rule of Treaty Interpretation

3.01 This chapter studies the application by FIATs of each provision of the ‘general rule’ of interpretation contained in Article 31 of the Vienna Convention. Following a general introduction in Section A, Section B proceeds to examine FIAT treaty interpretation practice relating to good faith, ordinary meaning, context, and object and purpose—the four main criteria contained in the all-important first paragraph of Article 31. Section C deals with FIAT practice in relation to Article 31(2), which provides an elaboration of ‘context’ in treaty interpretation....