Issues & Structures II International Law

Question: The recognition of a state under International Law is a declaration of intent by one state to acknowledge another power as a "state" within the meaning of International Law. What are the elements of statehood under International Law? Is the existence of a state dependent on whether it has been recognized as such? Answer: Elements of statehood: There exists no exact and precise definition of what can be called a state under International Law. However, Article 1 of the Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States of 1993, laws down that states as independent persons under international law should possess: A permanent population: the requirement qualifies for a stable community for if a community remains absent, then the state cannot be defined. The size of the population is generally immaterial though a minimum accepted number of people as permanent residents is essential to confer statehood. A defined territory: there must be the presence of a well defined portion of land that should be inhabited by the stable community. The presence of a territory over which authority is expressed is essential to determine a state. A government: for the smooth functioning of the state, a political organization or a government is very essential. It must be a strong entity with a centralized administration. The international obligations should be fulfilled by it. Basically, it is the body that does all the functions on behalf of the state. : entering into relations with other states should be there. It should be capable to distinguish one state from other aggression and other states should be prepared to enter into relations with it. There are certain theories of recognition like the constitutive theory, the declaratory theory etc which define recognition on various terms. requirements: there are certain other requirements like independence, sovereignty etc which determine the statehood. Recognition of a state: A question generally arises as to whether the legal existence of a State is dependent upon its recognition by other states or not. There are controversial views regarding this. This concept of recognition is not generally a rule under the requirements of positive international law. Positive international law does not validate that a State and its existence depends on the recognition factor. As and when a State comes into formation, the, as per the rules under International Law, it automatically gets bestowed with all the liabilities and obligations that it is supposed to follow. This right comes to play its role irrespective of whether the new state is recognized by others or not. What international law does is, it simply makes its application on the relations between two communities which in turn depends on the fact that the two States under question have mutually recognized each other or not. As far as comprehending the world at large is concerned, the other argumentative jurists p ut forth that recognition is important because only if recognition is made, then, the International communities would be able to construct a harmonious hypothesis and differentiation between what is wrong and what is right. They believe that this a requirement under the view of the jurists and it refrains from being a positive norm of international law. The opposite view generally remains silent on this particular point. Bibliography Google Books,General Theory Of Law And State(2015) Icj-cij.org,Statute Of The Court|International Court Of Justice(2015) Sites.google.com,5. A State As A Subject Of International Law - Dr. Walid Abdulrahim Professor Of Law(2015) Www.Ilsa.Org(2015) Icj-cij.org,Statute Of The Court|International Court Of Justice(2015) . Sites.google.com,5. A State As A Subject Of International Law - Dr. Walid Abdulrahim Professor Of Law(2015) . Google Books,General Theory Of Law And State(2015) . Www.Ilsa.Org(2015) .