Thesis (M.A. in National Security Affairs)--Naval Postgraduate School, June 2005. / Thesis Advisor(s): Donald Abenheim. Includes bibliographical references (p. 61-65). Also available online.

Thesis (M.A.)--Villanova University, 2006. / Political Science Dept. Includes bibliographical references.

In 1869-70 the Métis of the Red River region in Manitoba resisted the transfer of their homeland from the Hudson’s Bay Company to Canada. The Métis people responded to this transfer by blocking Canadian surveyors, government officials, and taking control of the territory through the establishment of representative institutions. Eventually, the Métis negotiated favourable terms with Ottawa which, this thesis argues, represented according to law, and to the Métis, a treaty. This thesis argues that this treaty was intended to protect the Métis homeland and provide political and social protections. The Manitoba Métis Treaty was intended to guarantee the Métis a land base in Manitoba the total size of which was to be 1.4 million acres. The reservation of this land came with protective obligations so that the entire community would receive a benefit from such lands. While Canada has developed a body of treaty law which will be used to interpret the Manitoba Métis Treaty, matters were convoluted by the enshrinement of this treaty agreement in the Manitoba Act of 1870, a document which would gain constitutional status a year later. The impact of this legislative history has led some researchers to link government obligations entirely to the Act, rather than to the negotiated agreement. Indeed, it would seem that the negotiations have been, for the most part, understood as nothing more than conversations. I reject that position and argue that both the negotiations and the Act must be taken into consideration when assessing the obligations undertaken by the Crown. The unique history of the Manitoba agreement means that Canada was under both constitutional and treaty law obligations to uphold the negotiated agreement between itself and the Métis. This thesis argues that not only is the treaty the correct legal interpretation of the events of 1869-70 but that the government of Canada failed to honour its commitments in several meaningful ways. The approach utilized in this thesis is designed to be reliant upon the basic structure and doctrines of Canadian law but to do so in a manner which gives weight to the Métis voice. It is neither a critique which is wholly internal to Canadian law nor is it completely dismissive of Canadian law. Instead, this thesis will illustrate that with only minor adjustments to the application and interpretation of colonial law, the Manitoba Métis Treaty could find a more receptive audience in Canadian legal thought. In the face of a reasonable alternative, such a project can allow other researchers to question why the courts have chosen a path which denies reception of Métis voice, community and culture in Canadian law.

This research will focus on the minority position of the Kurdish population in Turkey and how it has developed over time. The aim is to study particular historical and recent events that have affected the Kurdish population to understand why the Kurdish people are one of the world’s largest minority populations without an independent state. This research utilizes a qualitative case study employing text analysis of scholars and treaties such as the Lausanne and Sevres Treaty. The theory that will be used during this research will be neorealism with the main philosophy being that state emphasizes an interest in power to secure security in an anarchic world. The state is the most important actor in any position regardless of the event occurring around it which also is the reasons behind the Kurdish minority position and why they have not reached independence.

Antarctic tourism represents the largest and fastest growing commercial activity on the Antarctic continent. Under consideration of its unprecedented growth and diversification, the Antarctic tourism sector is viewed with increasing scrutiny and concern. This concern is expressed in discussions surrounding the success and effectiveness of the existing regulatory framework for Antarctic tourism and asks what changes might be required to adequately protect the Antarctic continent in the future. Viewpoints and interests among Antarctic tourism operators, policy-makers, researchers and other stakeholders diverge, and Antarctic tourism is discussed as being either or both benefactor and detractor to the environmental and political integrity of Antarctica. This thesis discusses, regulations drawing on regime theory, the effectiveness of Antarctic tourism. It postulates the theory that the combined regulatory efforts of Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties (ATCPs) and industry self-regulation through the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) define the Antarctic tourism regime. Using interviews and a Delphi study as the primary methods of inquiry, stakeholder viewpoints on regulatory and operational characteristics of Antarctic tourism were collected and integrated into a discussion of the effectiveness of the current regulatory regime and an assessment of potential options for regulating Antarctic tourism in the future. The interviews provide insights particularly into operational matters and the in situ practice of tour operators and their compliance with existing regulations. The Delphi study focuses on how the current regulatory issues are addressed, how rules and regulation are enacted and whether the current regulatory framework needs improvement. The thesis research shows that Antarctic tourism stakeholders are concerned about the increasing scale and diversification of Antarctic tourism and generally subscribe to a conservation imperative when assessing potential options for the future regulation of Antarctic tourism. The Antarctic Treaty System is regarded as being stable and having matured over the years, although the regime has not been tested to any great extent. Tourism development in the Antarctic may well prove to be a first test of the stability and success of the Antarctic Treaty System. Stakeholders desire a continued strong partnership between Antarctic Treaty Parties and IAATO regarding the regulation of Antarctic tourism, but conclude that in view of the rapid development of Antarctic tourism, structural, institutional and legislative changes are necessary if Antarctic tourism regulation is to remain successful. The thesis argues that these necessary changes do not inevitably involve a complete overhaul of the existing regulatory regime for Antarctic tourism and that a new overarching regulatory instrument such as a tourism convention may neither be the most desirable nor feasible approach to regulating tourism to the Antarctic. Instead, this thesis research suggests that regulatory improvements need to build on the strengths of the current regime and on a strategic vision that should guide the future regulation of Antarctic tourism.

Immediately after the outbreak of the World War, Great Britain, France and Japan cut the German submarine cables which were situated in the different oceans of the world. The study of the submarine cables during the World War and its aftermath is a complex problem. To understand the post-war negotiations, previous international agreements, treaties and the ownership, operation and financing of the cables must be understood.

In recent years, number of initiatives arised from the European Union and OECD towards active cooperation and coordination between countries in the fight against international tax avoidance practices. The abuse of double taxation treaties and tax legislation in general became subject of increasing interest also among the Czech professional public. The aim of my thesis is to examine whether and to what extent double taxation tax treaties are used by taxpayers for purposes other than those originally negotiated between states, explore what are the tools that can prevent abuse of tax treaties and to assess whether tools used in the Czech Republic correspond to international standards and whether there is scope for more effective aplication of these tools with regard to international practice. As my research within international context showed, there are a number of anti avoidance rules against abuse of tax treaties and tax avoidance in general. The anti avoidance rules are incorporated in national substantive and procedural legislation, as well as in international law. Other relevant anti avoidance rules are elaborated by the courts. Effective tool to prevent undesirable international tax practices is, not least, international cooperation, and especially timely and relevant exchange of tax...

Magister Legum - LLM / The United Kingdom (UK) is one of the largest Member states within the European Union (EU) that receive export goods from developing countries. The UK has successfully voted to exit the EU through a referendum and this may impact the already existing developing countries’ markets that depend on their exports to the UK. On the one hand, the UK has promised that it intends on maintaining the existing trade agreements with most of its trade partners including the Southern African Development Community (SADC)-EU Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA). On the other hand, the UK is concerned of its independence from the EU and at this point in time, it can only be anticipated that, agreements if any, relating to Brexit will only suffice once the entire exiting process has been completed.

As the investment treaty arbitration regime matures, consensus is emerging as to the need for public interest considerations to be taken into account in resolving disputes under international investment agreements (IIAs). However, the question of how such considerations should be reflected remains contentious. This thesis proposes that the remedies stage of the process can, and should, play a role in taking account of public interest considerations and so in easing the tension between host state regulatory sovereignty and investment protection that lies at the heart of the investment treaty regime. Thus, this thesis argues that, while, on the one hand, there is a need to introduce an element of reciprocity into the investment treaty arbitration process in order to ensure continuing state co-operation and to reflect the broader underlying purposes of IIAs, on the other, the primary object of the system remains the protection of foreign investors. These competing imperatives can lead to difficulties in taking account of public interest considerations at the merits stage of the arbitration process. Therefore, in order to reconcile these competing imperatives and to achieve an optimal balance between host state regulatory sovereignty and investment protection, this thesis proposes that public interest considerations should be recognised at the remedies stage where such considerations cannot be taken into account either sufficiently or at all at the merits stage and identifies a number of situations in which this approach would be appropriate. Potential doctrinal bases for implementation of this approach are also examined and the conclusion reached that, given the significant degree of discretion afforded to tribunals in applying the full reparation principle and the role that equity can permissibly play in quantifying damages, this approach can, save in the case of lawful expropriations, be implemented within the parameters of existing legal principles.

This thesis explores the rules of treaty interpretation as they are applied by foreign investment arbitral tribunals ("FIATs"). Its primary aims are: a) to determine whether FIAT treaty interpretation practice is generally consistent with other international courts and tribunals; b) to assess whether the treaty interpretation rules contained in the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties ("Vienna Convention") are suitable for application in investor-State treaty disputes; and c) to evaluate the contribution of FIAT treaty interpretation jurisprudence to international law. The body of the thesis provides a background to treaty interpretation rules in international law and then examines in detail the application of the rules of interpretation contained in the Vienna Convention by both international courts and tribunals and FIATs. It also explores modes of interpretation that have been deployed by these two groups which are not explicitly referenced in the Vienna Convention. Investigation is also made of some unique or notable aspects of FIAT jurisprudence that relates to treaty interpretation. The research was carried out primarily through the analysis of international court and tribunal decisions and FIAT awards. The principal findings of the thesis are that: a) a general congruence exists between the interpretative practice of FIATs and that of other international courts and tribunals; b) the application of the Vienna Convention rules on treaty interpretation are suitable for investment treaty arbitration, with some exceptions, e. g., in situations where investors have vastly disproportionate access to the preparatory work of treaties as compared with respondent States; and c) FIATs have made a significant contribution to the international law of treaty interpretation.