Pacta

Asked at a news briefing if Greece was free to forego the planned pensions cuts, Commission spokesman Alexander Winterstein replied: “Pacta sunt servanda” – using a Latin legal term meaning “agreements must be kept”.

Every newly elected king was supposed to sign two documents—the Pacta conventa ("agreed pacts")—a confirmation of the king's pre-election promises, and Henrican articles (artykuły henrykowskie, named after the first freely elected king, Henry of Valois ).

However, common law jurisdictions usually do not have the principle of good faith in commercial contracts, therefore it is inappropriate to state that pacta sunt servanda includes the principle of good faith.

The only limit to pacta sunt servanda are the peremptory norms of general international law, called jus cogens (compelling law).

To derive from these sources that pacta sunt servanda includes the principle of good faith is therefore incorrect.