Since 1991, the Israeli-Palestinian drama has shifted from the tragic course of war and violence, to a framework for peace. Israel's sovereignty is a fait accompli. The geo-political form of Palestinian self-determination is to be shaped by both parties, taking into account regional reality and international law. / This study serves as a modest examination of the application of certain international law concepts in settling two conflicting national aspirations within a unique factual context. / The main theoretical definitions of self-determination and its legal status in international law are first reviewed, along with the socio-juridical aspect of nationhood. The analysis of those topics constitutes a starting point for discussing basic Palestinian legal arguments related to Israel's right to exist, as well as to the scope of Palestinian national entity. / The abandonment of "armed struggle" as a legitimate course of action, and of Palestinian legal claims justifying a hostile policy against Israel, are necessary pre-conditions for co-existence, in which each nation determines its political fate. / Another vital element for the realization of such a modus vivendi is the development of a relationship built on trust. A restrained application of Palestinian self-determination might be necessary in the interim. The complete expression of Palestinian free will is, for many, still a utopian idea. Its achievement is largely dependant upon the negation of Palestinian legal claims which are aimed at the invalidation of Israel as a legitimate, sovereign state.

<p>This thesis addresses the role of geopolitical interests in the voting record of the UNSC (UNSC) in authorizing action, specifically humanitarian intervention, in the cases of genocide in Rwanda and Sudan. The classic theories of international relations, realism and liberalism, are applied to determine which theory has higher explanatory power in determining the level of involvement and humanitarian intervention by the UNSC in these specific cases. Realist assumptions would expect that the possible economic or strategic interests of states within the Council would influence the level of involvement or humanitarian intervention authorized. In contrast, liberalist notions would expect that the level of conflict severity or duration would determine the level of involvement or humanitarian intervention authorized. This thesis finds that the economic and strategic interests of the members of the UNSC can serve as a better indicator in determining the level of intervention authorized in these cases. Thus, realist theory holds higher explanatory power of the UNSC reactions to the cases of Rwanda and Sudan. </p>

<p>Over the past two decades, a substantial literature has focused on the geopolitics of strategically located Central Asian energy supplies. Some analysts have even regarded the international competition over the regional oil and gas as a New Great Game among the developed West, Russia, and the emerging Asian energy importers. Much less attention has been paid to the means employed by the various competitors in achieving their interests in the Central Asian hydrocarbon sector. This Master Thesis analyzes the competition over the energy resources in Kazakhstan between two regional powers Russia and China for the period from 1991 to 2011. The study assesses the concept of power in its political, economic, and military terms as a way to achieve desired outcomes in the regional energy sector. The analysis concludes that economic statecraft is the dominant tool used in securing interests in the Central Asian oil and gas sector and thus allows China's economic clout to guarantee favorable energy deals. At the same time, the results suggest that Russia's soft power along with the traditional military engagements help to secure other strategic interests in the region apart from the energy sector. </p>

On May 2, 1925, Benito Mussolini said in a speech to the Italian Senate: It is necessary to guarantee not only the Rhineland frontier but the Brennero frontier. On this point I wish to make the opinion of the Italian Government perfectly plain, especially in face of the propaganda which is being made in favour of the Anschluss in both Austria and Germany. It cannot be permitted. Thirteen years later, the Giornale d'Italia carried Mussolini's Genoa speech of May 14, 1938, which read in part: "Fascist Italy could not indefinitely assume what was the odious and useless task of the old Austria of the Habsburgs and Metternich---that of opposing the movement of nations towards their unity." This work will be an attempt to determine the factors which led Mussolini from the former to the latter position, from a virtual protectorate over the Republic of Austria to the complete elimination of Italian influence in the Danube area. Such a study lends itself to a critique of the events in Austria between 1933 and 1938 and to an examination of the wider international developments of the same period as reflected in Austrian and Italian policies. The organization of the events of the Austrian tragedy can be delineated into three distinct acts. These acts are the coup d'etat of July 25, 1934, with the death of Federal Chancellor Dollfuss; the Austro-German Agreement of July 11, 1936; and the Einmarsch of March 11, 1938. Immediately preceding each of these three principal acts are three seemingly secondary ones: the February revolt of 1934, the collapse of the Stresa front in May 1935, and the Berchtesgaden Protocol of February 1938, respectively. These latter events are in effect the direct result of Italian influence and policy, and carry an importance not apparent at first, being the causes of the more prominent occurrences in Austria. Implicit, then, in the course of developments leading to the Austrian Anschluss with Germany is the influence of the foreign policy of Mussolini and Fascist Italy. The significant circumstances of Austria's position prior to the Second World War are generally well-known, and the conflicts and frequently highly emotional drama of the First Republic have been subjected to critical investigation. However, these studies have confined themselves largely to Austrian internal developments, frequently biased or written to justify some party or principle. That these domestic developments are intrinsically due to external motivation is not so apparent. These external factors are obscured by their less publicized knowledge, by their overshadowing predominance in other spheres of international power politics, and by the portentousness of still greater factors crowding upon one another in this period.

This paper examines the question of when economic sanctions will be effectively instituted by states by looking at the role of the multinational corporation in the sanctioning process. Although governments have resources at their disposal with which to enforce their policies, the amount of resources that they are willing to devote to this enforcement are a function of their own cost/benefit calculations. They are also influenced by their predictions of the level of compliance of their private firms that conduct business in the target state. A game-theoretic model of the interaction between a sanctioning government and a private firm is offered and used to derive hypotheses on the conditions affecting a government's willingness to expend monitoring costs to enforce a sanctions policy. These hypotheses are then applied to the cases of the South African and Rhodesian oil embargoes.

Current technology and the planning of ambitious programs for the next decade tend to transform the stakes inherent in space activities. In effect, the launching of space stations and platforms pave the way towards new industrial prospects previously unheard of to date. Thus, the objective of this thesis is to present an outline of these new prospects and to undertake a legal analysis motivating the transition from basic research to commercial applications. / Consequently, the preliminary chapter will describe the general characteristics of those future trends towards commercial and industrial space activities. Legal provisions of Public International Space law are examined in the first chapter, notably those which are indicative of the difficulties encountered in this process. / A second chapter will conduct the study of the questions regarding Registration, Jurisdiction and Choice of Law which hopefully lead to a successful regulation of Outer Space activities. The US/International Space Station project will provide an example which will underline the deficiencies and ambiguities of the applicable law. / Finally, the development of a legal framework favouring the commercial viability of these future commercial production processes will be produced in the third chapter.

This thesis examines the doctrine of forum non conveniens as follows. First, the preliminary factors for foreign aircraft accident plaintiffs to consider, such as the diminishing deterrents to aircraft accident litigation and requirements for bringing a suit to a U.S. forum, are set forth. Second, the development of the doctrine of forum non conveniens is traced from its origins to the landmark case of Piper Aircraft Co. v. Reyno, 454 U.S. 235 (1981) to present. Finally, after examining various model solutions to the problems raised by the doctrine of forum non conveniens, a new solution is proposed.

During the last two decades international terrorism has made international civil aviation one of its prime targets. While the aviation security conventions cover a variety of acts of terrorism against civil air transport they failed to adequately deal with terrorism at international airports. / In direct response to the terrorist attacks that took place at Rome and Vienna international airports in December 1985, the international civil aviation community adopted under ICAO auspices the Montreal Protocol of 1988, a new legal instrument aimed at the control of terrorism at airports serving international civil aviation. / The purpose of this thesis is to critically examine the Protocol in order to provide an answer to the question whether or not this legal instrument can be considered as an effective tool for the achievement of its main goal, the suppression of terrorism at international airports.

The thrust of this research lies in Chapter II in which the study using, inter alia, travaux preparatoires attempts to give an analytical and critical review and interpretation of the provisions of the Convention on the Marking of Explosives for the purpose of Detection of 1991. Analysing the provisions of the Convention, the study tries to preserve and reflect the atmosphere that characterised the deliberations of the International Air Law Conference of 1991, an exercise that is thought to be helpful when one is coupling the theoretical analysis with the practical problems of implementation. For this reason, the study is not restricted to theoretical questions of treaty law. The author benefited from personal participation, as an observer, in the International Conference on Air Law held at Montreal from 14 February to 1 March 1991. / The first chapter presents a full picture of the legal measures for safeguarding aviation security. This chapter endeavours to review the interpretation and implementation of the aviation security multilateral instruments presently in force.

No description available.