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The Paradoxical Place of Territory in International Law

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Netherlands Yearbook of International Law 2016

Part of the book series: Netherlands Yearbook of International Law ((NYIL,volume 47))

Abstract

This introductory chapter presents some of the key issues and developments surrounding the relationship between territory and international law. While most rules of international law are traditionally based on the notion of State territory, new developments have challenged territory as the main organising principle in international relations. In particular, three trends have affected the role of territoriality in international law: the move towards functional regimes, the rise of cosmopolitan projects claiming to transgress state boundaries, and the development of technologies resulting in the need to address intangible, non-territorial, phenomena. Yet, notwithstanding some profound changes, it remains impossible to think of international law without a territorial locus. The contributions to this Volume demonstrate that, if international law is undergoing changes, this implies a reconfiguration of territory, but not a move beyond it.

Martin Kuijer is the Legal Adviser of the Netherlands Ministry of Security and Justice, (substitute) member of the Venice Commission, and Professor of human rights law at the VU University Amsterdam. Wouter Werner is Professor public international law and co-director of the Centre for the Politics of Transnational Law, VU University Amsterdam.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    See also Hirsch Ballin 2017, Chap. 10 in this Volume.

  2. 2.

    The contradiction between ‘universe’ and ‘pluriverse’ is taken from Schmitt 1950.

  3. 3.

    Ryngaert 2017, Chap. 3 in this Volume.

  4. 4.

    Friedman 1964.

  5. 5.

    The term ‘human society’ is taken from de Vattel 1758, para 283. References to ‘mankind ’ can be found in several legal instruments regulating non-sovereign territories. One of the most beautiful expressions is contained in Article V of the Outer Space Treaty , which labels astronauts as ‘envoys of mankind’ (1967 Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, A/RES/21/2222 Annex).

  6. 6.

    1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 999 UNTS 171 (ICCPR), Preamble.

  7. 7.

    As cited by Koskenniemi 2004, at 27.

  8. 8.

    An example are the ‘interdependence theories’ as developed since the 1970s. See for example the seminal article by Keohane and Nye 1987.

  9. 9.

    See for example how UNGA Resolution 2625 (1970) combines a plea for self-determination with an emphasis on the sanctity of the borders of newly independent States.

  10. 10.

    See, e.g., Luhmann 1997.

  11. 11.

    The literature on the topic of fragmentation in international law is vast. For an overview of some of the core topics, see the report of the study group of the International Law Commission, ‘Fragmentation of International Law: Difficulties Arising From the Diversification and Expansion of International Law’, finalised by Martti Koskenniemi, A/CN.4/L.682, 13 April 2006.

  12. 12.

    Paulus 2004.

  13. 13.

    See, among other works: Pogge 2002; Buchanan 2003; Teson 2001.

  14. 14.

    Prosecutor v Tadić, ICTY Appeals Chamber, Decision on the Defence Motion for Interlocutory Appeal on Jurisdiction, Case No. IT-94-1-AR72, 2 October 1995, para 97.

  15. 15.

    de Wet 2006.

  16. 16.

    Fassbender 2009. For a somewhat more cautious approach, see Franck 2002 and MacDonald 1999. For a critique, see Werner 2007.

  17. 17.

    Koskenniemi 2003.

  18. 18.

    Rosa 2015.

  19. 19.

    Rosa and Scheuerman 2008.

  20. 20.

    Lübbe 2008.

  21. 21.

    Rosa 2015, at 71.

  22. 22.

    Rodrigue 2013, Chapter 2.2, para 3.

  23. 23.

    Rosa 2015, at 100.

  24. 24.

    Rosa 2015.

  25. 25.

    Harvey 1990, at 260 et seq.

  26. 26.

    Rosa 2015, at 99, links this term to the work of Koselleck 2000.

  27. 27.

    The literature on risk in late modernity is vast. Some of the core writings include Beck 1992; Beck 2006; Giddens 1991, 1999; Beck et al. 1994; Ewald 1991, 2002.

  28. 28.

    Ewald 2002.

  29. 29.

    Bílková 2017, Chap. 2 in this Volume.

  30. 30.

    Ryngaert 2017, Chap. 3 in this Volume.

  31. 31.

    Kendall 2017, Chap. 4 in this Volume.

  32. 32.

    Johns 2017, Chap. 5 in this Volume.

  33. 33.

    Boer 2017, Chap. 6 in this Volume.

  34. 34.

    Kleijssen and Perri 2017, Chap. 7 in this Volume.

  35. 35.

    Arcuri and Violi 2017, Chap. 8 in this Volume.

  36. 36.

    Skogly 2017, Chap. 9 in this Volume.

  37. 37.

    Hirsch Ballin 2017, Chap. 10 in this Volume.

  38. 38.

    Battjes 2017, Chap. 11 in this Volume.

  39. 39.

    Burke et al. 2017, Chap. 12 in this Volume.

  40. 40.

    Skogly 2017, Chap. 9 in this Volume.

  41. 41.

    Battjes 2017, Chap. 11 in this Volume.

  42. 42.

    Hirsch Ballin 2017, Chap. 10 in this Volume.

  43. 43.

    For a more elaborate discussion on the division of the legal world into spheres of civilization, see Koskenniemi 2004; Anghie 2004; Gong 1984.

  44. 44.

    Jackson 2007, at 315, as cited by Ryngaert 2017, Chap. 3 in this Volume.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ministry of Security and Justice of the Netherlands, The Hague, The Netherlands

    Martin Kuijer

  2. VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Martin Kuijer & Wouter Werner

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  1. Martin Kuijer
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Correspondence to Martin Kuijer .

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  1. Ministry of Security and Justice of the Netherlands, The Hague, The Netherlands

    Martin Kuijer

  2. Faculty of Law, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Wouter Werner

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Kuijer, M., Werner, W. (2017). The Paradoxical Place of Territory in International Law. In: Kuijer, M., Werner, W. (eds) Netherlands Yearbook of International Law 2016. Netherlands Yearbook of International Law, vol 47. T.M.C. Asser Press, The Hague. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6265-207-1_1

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