8 17. The facts that substantiate the Commission’s application in the present case refer to the alleged arrest and subsequent forced disappearance of Mr. Rosendo Radilla-Pacheco that occurred on August 25, 1974, that is, before the State’s adherence to the American Convention. However, in the present case it is argued that the forced disappearance of Mr. Radilla-Pacheco “has a continuous or permanent nature,” that up to this date his whereabouts are unknown, and that the investigations carried out in this sense have not produced any result whatsoever. 18. Therefore, the Court understands that the facts argued or the State’s behavior that could imply its international responsibility continued to exist after the treaty had gone into force for Mexico and up to the present. The continuance of this situation has not been contested by the State. Mexico argues that, on the contrary, the continued nature of the forced disappearance of persons is irrelevant in this case. 19. In substantiation of its arguments the State has invoked the principle of nonretroactivity of treaties, contemplated in Article 28 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (hereinafter “Vienna Convention”), according to which the States Parties will not be bound regarding acts, facts, or situations that occurred prior to the going into force of a treaty.20 20. The Court observes that according to the mentioned principle, the general rule is that a treaty does not have retroactive application on the acts or facts that were committed prior to the date on which in went into force, unless a different intention can be inferred from the same or has been made evident through other means. Now, it can be concluded from the same principle that as of the moment in which a treaty goes into force compliance of the obligations included therein are enforceable with regard to any action following that date. This corresponds to the principle pacta sunt servanda, according to which “[a]ll treaties in force bind the parties and shall be complied by them in good faith.”21 21. From the aforementioned, it is clear that a fact cannot constitute the violation of an international obligation derived from a treaty unless the State is bound by that obligation at the time at which the fact occurs. The determination of that moment and its extension in time is therefore relevant for the determination not only of the international responsibility of a State, but of the jurisdiction of this Tribunal to apply the treaty in question. 22. In this sense, it is important to differentiate between instantaneous acts and acts of a continuous or permanent nature.22 The latter “extend through the entire time period during which the fact continues and the lack of conformity with the international obligation is maintained.”23 Due to its characteristics, once the treaty goes into force, those continuous 20 Article 28 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties states that: “[u]nless a different intention appears from the treaty or is otherwise established, its provisions do not bind a party in relation to any act or fact which took place or any situation which ceased to exist before the date of the entry into force of the treaty with regard to that party.” 21 Article 26 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties. In the same sense Cf. Case of Baena Ricardo et al. v. Panama. Merits, Reparations, and Costs. Judgment of February 2, 2001. Series C No. 72, para. 99; I.C.J., Northern Cameroons (Cameroon v. United Kingdom), Preliminary Objections. Judgment of 2 December 1963, Report 1963, pages 18 and 27; and Permanent Court of International Justice, Case of the Free Zones of Upper Savoy and the District of Gex, Judgment of 7 June 1932, Series A/B No. 46, pages 161 and 162. 22 Cf. Eur. Ct. H.R., Case of Loizidou v. Turkey, Application no. 15318/89, Judgment of 18 December 1996, paras. 35 and 41. 23 Article 14 of the Draft Articles on Responsibility of States for Internationally Wrongful Acts. In this regard, Cf. James Crawford The International Law Commission’s Articles on State Responsibility- Introduction, Text, and