Bloomsbury Promises of States under International Law: 37 (Studies in International Law)

Textbooks on international law, dicta of the International Court of Justice and the International Law Commission's 'Guiding Principles applicable to unilateral declarations of states capable of creating legal obligations' of 2006, all reflect the fact that in international law a state's unilateral declaration can create a legally binding obligation. Unilateral declarations are common, as a look at the weekly headlines of any major newspaper will reveal. Many of the declarations made at the highest level are, of course, vaguely expressed and carry no tangible legal commitment. But others deliver a very clear message: for instance the US's April 2010 declaration on its future use of nuclear weapons or Kosovo's declaration of independence and pledge to follow the Ahtisaari Plan, are two recent and prominent examples of unilateral declarations at the international level. The same sources, however, also reveal that while state promises are accepted as a means for states to create full blown legal commitments, the law governing such declarations is far from clear. This monograph fills a gap in international legal scholarship by raising and answering the question of the precise legal value of such pledges in the realm of public international law. After a brief introduction state promises in international law are defined and contrasted with other unilateral acts of states, and the history of promises in state practice and court decisions is delineated, together with scholarly opinion. The book then provides a detailed picture of the international legal framework governing promises of states, and ends with a brief assessment of the raison d'être for promises as a binding mechanism in international law, along with their advantages and disadvantages in comparison with the classical mechanism for assuming international obligations - the international treaty. This is currently the only book to present a comprehensive overview of the legal effect of promises by states in international law. Review "In sum, Eckart has produced a detailed analysis of the legal regime for promises of states international law. He vividly presents the current, albeit limited, State practice on the topic. The book is dedicated to a topic that has not previously received sufficient attention from scholars of international law, an omission now made good by Eckart's excellent study. (translated from the original German)" --Archiv des Völkerrechts Vol 5/12 "This is a superbly produced and edited book...and it is elegantly written." -- Law and Politics Book Review Volume 23, No. 2 "The great achievement of the book is that it has been able to demonstrate the usefulness and legitimacy of the concept of promise in international law. . . . The book contains a full discussion of all the issues which unilateral promises can raise in diplomatic practice. . . . In sum, the book may be called an outstanding complement to the existing legal literature on a key issue of contemporary international law. It will be indispensable reading for any lawyer interested in the concept of unilateral promises in international law." -- From the Foreword by Christian Tomuschat About the Author Christian Eckart is an articled clerk at the Higher Appellate Court of Berlin.