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Update Of Current Legal Proceedings At The Icty, Jenia I. Turner

Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters

No abstract provided.

Information Warfare And Neutrality, George K. Walker

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article examines Information Warfare--that is, actions taken to affect adversary information and information systems conducted during a crisis or conflict to achieve or promote specific objectives against the adversary. The Article begins with an explanation of the development and structure of the Internet. It then cites examples of the use of information strategies in recent conflicts.

Next, the Article turns to a discussion of the principles of neutrality in the U.N. Charter era. Specifically, the Article examines neutrality in the context of land warfare, naval warfare, aerial warfare, and outer space. Next, the Author discusses application of principles from …

Combating Impunity For International Crimes, M. Cherif Bassiouni

University of Colorado Law Review

No abstract provided.

Anticipatory Humanitarian Intervention In Kosovo, Jonathan I. Charney

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The intervention by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Kosovo during the spring of 1999 aroused controversy at the time and still provokes questions about the legality of the action, its precedential effect, and procedures for developing new international law. The participants faced a legal and moral dilemma between international law prohibitions on the use of force and the goal of preventing or stopping widespread grave violations of international human rights. This commentary seeks to chart a course for the future in light of the current legal and moral environment.

Many individuals on all sides of the Kosovo crisis …

The International Legal Implications Of "Non-Lethal" Weapons, David P. Fidler

Articles by Maurer Faculty

No abstract provided.

Review Essay-The Relucant Sheriff, Iv Ashton

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

Dr. Haas sums up his basic approach as follows: "I propose that the United States adopt a foreign policy based on the notion of regulation."

Ilsa Journal Of International & Comparative Law, Ilsa Journal Of International & Comparative Law

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

The arms embargo has deprived Bosnia-Hercegovina of the right of legitimate self-defense. It has caused the destruction of the country, deepened the war and caused genocide.

The Lawfulness Of Humanitarian Intervention, Michael J. Reppas

St. Thomas Law Review

This article addresses the conflicting claims of territorial sovereignty and humanitarian intervention, analyzes how these claims have been resolved in the past, and predicts how current trends in resolution will affect the global common interest. Part II discusses, in detail, the conflicting theories of territorial sovereignty and humanitarian intervention. Part III analyzes the trends in decision-making and the conditioning factors since the end of the Second World War that have motivated the United Nations to establish international law and a specific protocol for when humanitarian intervention is justified. Part IV analyzes the history between the United States and the former …

The Prospects For Challenging U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy In Light Of The World Court's Advisory Opinion On The Legality Of The Threat Or Use Of Such Weapons Comment., Stephen Gordon

St. Mary's Law Journal

In an opinion, the World Court concluded “the threat or use of nuclear weapons would generally be contrary to the rules of international law,” the only exception being “in an extreme circumstance of self-defense, where survival of a State is at stake.” The Court’s opinion could read as prohibiting the most common ways the United States incorporated nuclear weapons into its defense strategy. First, it may prevent the United States from using such weapons again legally. Second, if the opinion does not render using nuclear weapons illegal in all circumstances, it might prohibit the United States from ever being the …

Neither Free Nor Fair: The 1996 Bosnian Elections And The Failure Of The U.N. Election-Monitoring Mission, Christopher A. Riley

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The international community faced a difficult challenge after the Dayton Peace Accords ended the civil war in Bosnia. Free and fair elections became an essential component to establishing a democratic government in the war-torn country. The United Nations and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe responded by carrying out Annex 3 of the Peace Accords, which called for such elections. The resultant election-monitoring mission in Bosnia, however, was unsuccessful The elections were held under improper conditions. Therefore, the Bosnian people lack confidence in the democratic process, which is necessary for long-term democracy.

Regulating The Use Of Force In The 21st Century: The Continuing Importance Of State Autonomy, Mary Ellen O'Connell

Journal Articles

The most important, and certainly the most ambitious, modification of international law in this century has been the outlawing of the use of force to settle international disputes. The definitive prohibition on the use of force came with the adoption of the United Nations Charter and, in particular, Charter article 2(4).

For a short while, from 1991 until 1994, it appeared that a majority of Security Council members had re-interpreted the Charter's order of priorities. To some, it seemed that the Council had placed such values as human rights, self-determination, and even democracy above the value of peace through respect …

Arresting Impunity: The Case For Universal Jurisdiction In Bringing War Criminals To Accountability, Christopher C. Joyner

Law and Contemporary Problems

One means to enhance the prospects for bringing indicted war criminals to justice is to promote adoption of the principle of universality as the legal basis for prosecutorial jurisdiction.

The Reemergence Of German Arms: How Far Will Germany's March Toward Full Use Of Military Force Go?, Walter J. Lemanski

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

In 1994, the German Federal Constitutional Court handed down a landmark decision redefining the constitutionality of German use of military force. For more than forty years, the German government claimed that the German Constitution forbade the use of military forces for other than the defense of NATO territory. The Federal Constitutional Court, however, held that a majority vote of Parliament was all that was required to commit forces to military actions sanctioned by collective security agreements. In 1995, for the first time since World War II, Germany sent offensive military forces into a combat zone. These events raise the question …

The Yugoslav War Crimes Tribunal: The Compatibility Of Peace, Politics, And International Law, Karl A. Hochkammer

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Since 1991, a brutal war has raged among ethnic groups of the former Yugoslavia. Outraged by the atrocities that have pervaded the war, the United Nations established an international tribunal in 1993 to adjudicate violations of international humanitarian law committed in the Yugoslav conflict. Although well-intentioned, the Yugoslav Tribunal nevertheless may fail to accomplish its goals. A number of practical and legal obstacles may impede its success. In particular, the United Nations lack of physical control over the combatants in the Yugoslav conflict may frustrate the Tribunal's ability to bring accused war criminals to justice. This Note surveys the problems …

The Theory And Practice Of Regional Organization Intervention In Civil Wars, Christopher J. Borgen

Faculty Publications

The United Nations' reach in peacekeeping is fast outdistancing its grasp. Spread across seventeen countries, the U.N.’s over 80,000 civilian and military personnel monitor cease-fires, protect aid convoys, and separate warring parties. As the U.N. extends its arms, financial resources seem to slip through its fingers like grains of sand. In short, the U.N. lacks the resources to continue increasing its peacekeeping responsibilities.

In An Agenda for Peace (Agenda), Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali proposes that part of the solution to the economic problems of the U.N. lies in reconsidering how regional organizations interact with the U.N., a suggestion which revisits a …

Default Breakdown: The Vienna Convention On The Law Of Treaties' Inadequate Framework On Reservations, Daniel N. Hylton

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties attempted to give some order to the confusion that was treaty law after World War II. One treaty issue that was particularly in need of codification was the law governing reservations to treaties. With the growing number of participants in the international community making universal agreement more difficult, the frequency of reservations, as a vehicle for circumscribing disagreements in treaty negotiations, increased. However, most practices regarding reservations severely limited the ability of states to make reservations successfully. To remedy that problem, the Vienna Convention adopted a flexible approach to treaty reservations, …

The Commander In Chief And United Nations Charter Article 43: A Case Of Irreconcilable Differences?, James W. Houck

Faculty Scholarship

Part II of this paper provides an overview of the U.N. Charter's framework for collective security, with a particular focus on the Charter's provision for the. creation, command, and control of U.N. military forces. During the Cold War, this framework fell into desuetude, and U.N. forces that participated in enforcement actions, such as Korea and Iraq, as well as peacekeeping operations, were created in ad hoc fashion outside the Charter's framework. Part III examines this development and considers how the conclusion of an Article 43 agreement might alter the President's authority under international law to pursue U.S. interests while participating …

The Legal Regime Of Enclosed Or Semi-Enclosed Seas: The Particular Case Of The Mediterranean, Paul Gormley

Dalhousie Law Journal

The 1982 United Nations Law of the Sea Convention has not only codified the relatively scant corpus of international law relating to the rubrics of enclosed semi-enclosed seas, but it has also given some guidance toward the future evolution of this unique body of sea law. Accordingly the underlying thesis advanced by a number of distinguished authors at a conference - convened by the Inter-University Center in Dubrovnik - is that the Law of the Sea Convention does not represent a definitive or complete corpus of law; rather the general articles will acquire substance from state practice, bilateral agreements between …

The Unification Of Germany And International Law, Frans Von Der Dunk, Peter H. Kooijmans

Space, Cyber, and Telecommunications Law Program: Faculty Publications

The process of German unification, at least as far as its international legal aspects are concerned, is almost complete now. After the first Staatsvertrag, creating as of July 1, 1990, a monetary union between the Federal Republic of Germany ("FRG") and the German Democratic Republic ("GDR"), the second Staatsvertrag uniting the two States as of October 3 legally sealed the inter-German aspects of the unification.

At the same time, the September 12 Treaty between the four former occupation powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, Great Britain and France—and the two former occupied German States took care of the remaining …

Cyprus And The Rule Of Law, Eugene T. Rossides

Syracuse Journal of International Law and Commerce

This article addresses two broad questions. First, whether the Turkish government, by its 1974 invasion and occupation of over a third of Cyprus using American-supplied arms, violated United States laws, bilateral agreements between Turkey and the United States under those laws, and any international charters, treaties and conventions. Second, whether the government of the United States, through the actions of Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger, violated its own laws in connection with Turkey's invasion and occupation of Cyprus. The last section of the article briefly discusses a future course of action.

The Reunification Of Germany: Comments On A Legal Maze, Jutta Brunnée

Dalhousie Law Journal

In its Preamble, the Basic Law - the constitution - of the Federal Republic of Germany declares itself a transitional order put in place until all Germans can freely decide to live in a reunified Germany. The Preamble is evidence of both history and aspirations of the western part of Germany that emerged from the Second World War. It is now one of the legal foundations for an event that only a year ago few thought was possible: the merging of the German Democratic Republic and the Federal Republic of Germany into one German state. In its preamble and in …

Law For A World Community, John Quigley

Syracuse Journal of International Law and Commerce

Changes in international relations are creating a context for a new role for law. The exigencies of survival require solutions that can be achieved only at a supranational level. In the process, international law is being transformed from a law between and among states to a law that includes international organizations, individual persons, corporations, and other non-state groups. It is moving from a set of negative prohibitions that sought to keep states from injuring each other by acts of violence to a set of positive obligations to preserve and improve life for all. Law is shifting from being an interstate …

Peace And The World Court: A Comment On The Paramilitary Activities Case, Robert F. Turner

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

One of the most painful experiences of my government service occurred on January 18, 1985, when as Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs I was called on to sign letters informing Congress of the President's decision "not to participate further in the case brought by Nicaragua before the International Court of Justice." I felt deeply that the United States approach was mistaken--not so much on legal as on political grounds'--and in advocating my views I pushed strongly against the proper limits of legitimate dissent within the bureaucracy.

Having defended the Court against speculative criticism from lawyers …

International Environmental Policy: Emergence And Dimensions, By Lynton Keith Caldwell, Douglas R. Weiner

Maryland Journal of International Law

No abstract provided.

Legal Aspects Of East-West German Relations, Bruno Simma

Maryland Journal of International Law

No abstract provided.

The Status Of The Gulf Of Sirte In International Law, Francesco Francioni

Syracuse Journal of International Law and Commerce

This article examines whether Libya's declaration that the Gulf of Sirte is part of its territory is lawful.

American Prisoners In Foreign Prisons: The Prisoner Transfer Treaties, Patricia M. Wilson

Penn State International Law Review (1982 - 2011)

For the average American traveler, being apprehended and arrested in a foreign country on criminal charges can be an unimaginable and bizarre experience. Whether he is in England, which has a legal system relatively similar to ours, or in China, which has a very different legal system, he is likely to be equally mistaken in believing that his status as an American citizen will be of any real assistance. Unfortunately, unless he happens to be with United States military forces or protected by some sort of diplomatic or other immunity, his criminal case will proceed from start to finish entirely …

Revolutions And Treaty Termination, Philip Noonan

Penn State International Law Review (1982 - 2011)

It is a widely accepted principle of international law that ordinary changes in government do not affect treaty obligations. During the course of the twentieth century, however, certain states and some writers have asserted that revolutionary changes in government do affect treaty obligations. Nevertheless, many states continue to adhere to the rigid rule that treaty obligations should not be affected even by radical changes in government. This rule can create anomalous and unreasonable results. Accordingly, it may be better to replace the present blanket rule with a flexible test that encompasses all relevant factors and provides a result in accordance …

Introduction To International Law As It Pertains To The Naval Officer, Wilfred A. Hearn

International Law Studies

No abstract provided.

The Soviet View Of International Law, Oliver J. Lissitzyn

International Law Studies

No abstract provided.