http://www.heritage.org/static/rss/international-law.xmlInternational Law - The Heritage Foundationen-US© Copyright 2012info@heritage.orgRSS Generator {4774C392-F0D7-43A4-AFB5-EBF7CBA56A83}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2011/12/un-convention-on-certain-conventional-weapons-what-the-us-should-doThe U.S. should demonstrate by its actions that the advocates of the CCM have made a serious error by rejecting the U.S. initiative.Fri, 16 Dec 2011 14:50:00 -0500{7E8CC4E5-CAAE-4957-90E3-39F5C7FC3775}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2011/12/effects-of-the-un-arms-trade-treaty-on-the-usA draft of the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty reveals some of the reasons the U.S. should withdraw from negotiations. Tue, 13 Dec 2011 10:20:00 -0500{1A601EC0-042A-4480-9AAE-296E0744AAED}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2011/12/focus-on-agenda-21-should-not-divert-attention-from-homegrown-anti-growth-policiesAgenda 21, a voluntary plan adopted at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, unabashedly calls on governments to intervene and regulate nearly every potential impact that human activity could have on the environment. However, Agenda 21 is non-binding; it depends on governments for implementation. If opponents focus excessively on Agenda 21, it is much more likely that homegrown smart-growth policies that undermine the quality of life, personal choice, and property rights in American communities will be implemented by local, state, and federal authorities at the behest of environmental groups and other vested interests. Preventing American implementation of Agenda 21 should therefore be viewed as only one part of a broader effort to convince U.S. government officials to repeal destructive smart-growth programs and prevent the enactment of new ones.Thu, 01 Dec 2011 14:17:00 -0500{57A19CCC-2E47-437D-A7BD-E3F50611F07E}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/commentary/2011/10/the-law-of-the-seaThe United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, also known as the Law of the Sea Treaty (or LOST), presents a dilemma for some national security conservatives.Mon, 10 Oct 2011 01:00:00 -0400{468F2984-FFB8-4D4F-BC3E-A64DF3D03410}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2011/09/obama-administration-was-right-to-boycott-uns-durban-iiiCongress and the Administration should refuse to support Durban III financially by withholding America’s proportionate share of the conference. Fri, 23 Sep 2011 18:31:00 -0400{28430A32-D069-4989-94F9-1E279E146A5E}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2011/08/accession-to-un-convention-law-of-the-sea-is-unnecessary-to-secure-us-navigational-rights-freedomsFor more than 200 years, the United States has successfully preserved and protected its navigational rights and freedoms by relying on naval operations, diplomatic protests, and customary international law. U.S. membership in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) would not confer any maritime right or freedom that the U.S. does not already enjoy. The U.S. can best protect its rights by maintaining a strong U.S. Navy, not by acceding to a deeply flawed multilateral treaty.Wed, 24 Aug 2011 15:01:00 -0400{15C33050-BACA-462C-B226-1E19ABDFF105}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2011/07/the-un-arms-trade-treaty-still-seriously-flawedThe latest meeting of the Preparatory Committee illustrates that while the proposed Arms Trade Treaty can be improved, it cannot be fixed.Thu, 21 Jul 2011 17:04:00 -0400{C7D9A6FF-4C65-43C4-B221-C28358F1C12F}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2011/06/the-us-should-pursue-an-alternative-to-the-un-human-rights-councilThe U.N. Human Rights Council has failed to consistently fulfill its mandate to hold governments accountable for violating basic human rights and fundamental freedoms and to promote and protect human rights. Two years of U.S. membership on and engagement with the council have not significantly improved its performance. Rather than continuing to expend finite resources to achieve marginal, temporary results, the U.S. should focus its U.N. human rights efforts through the Third Committee of the General Assembly, supplemented with targeted support for the more effective elements of the U.N. human rights apparatus, such as Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the independent human rights experts who are charged with monitoring specific human rights issues and situations. The U.S. should also begin exploring the option of creating a truly effective international human rights body outside the U.N. system.Thu, 23 Jun 2011 01:00:00 -0400{75999058-29D8-4DA2-9E9D-EE2D192A382A}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2011/06/un-convention-on-the-law-of-the-sea-erodes-us-sovereignty-over-us-extended-continental-shelfIf the U.S. becomes a member of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, it will be required to transfer a large portion of the royalties generated on the U.S. extended continental shelf to the International Seabed Authority. These royalties would likely total tens or even hundreds of billions of dollars. The Authority would then distribute those funds to developing and landlocked nations, including some that are corrupt, undemocratic, or even state sponsors of terrorism. Instead of diverting U.S. revenues to such dubious purposes, the U.S. government should retain any wealth derived from the U.S. extended continental shelf for the benefit of the American people.Tue, 07 Jun 2011 12:46:00 -0400{0729D770-F0C6-46F8-B2EC-5E47A5ECF757}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2011/06/in-bed-with-radical-feminists-the-uns-misguided-womens-agendaFeminists lead their international agenda from UN Women, often in partnership with a host of NGOs that espouse a radical social agenda.Fri, 03 Jun 2011 14:24:00 -0400{02D7EE18-E8A7-4BE2-81D3-3E3278396483}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2011/05/us-should-reject-ratification-of-the-comprehensive-test-ban-treatyThere is no justification for reconsideration of the CTBT today. The institutional integrity of the Senate is now at stake.Thu, 26 May 2011 11:40:00 -0400{E4163B23-53F6-447C-8595-5F0D9E62C46F}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2011/04/the-united-states-should-not-join-the-convention-on-cluster-munitionsThe Convention on Cluster Munitions is a misbegotten treaty that neither advances the laws of war nor enhances security. It is an unverifiable, unenforceable, all-or-nothing exercise in moral suasion, not a serious diplomatic instrument. It creates perverse incentives for insurgents to use civilian populations as human shields, undermines effective arms control efforts, inhibits nation-states’ ability to defend themselves, and denigrates the sovereignty of the United States and other democratic states. The U.S. should emphatically reject both the convention and the undemocratic Oslo Process that produced it and should instead continue to negotiate a realistic and enforceable protocol on cluster munitions that balances U.S. military requirements with the humanitarian concerns posed by unexploded ordnance.Thu, 28 Apr 2011 12:51:00 -0400{18BB9FF4-2C89-4B58-A03F-4E54841DFA59}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/multimedia/audio/2011/04/istook753-rights-for-thingsIstookTue, 12 Apr 2011 01:00:00 -0400{30524C88-88B2-403E-B511-0C3F677B666A}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2011/03/eucom-should-lead-us-combatant-commands-in-defense-of-national-interests-in-the-arcticEight countries hold vast territories in the Arctic: the United States, Canada, Russia, Norway, Denmark (via Greenland), Finland, Sweden, and Iceland. All eight countries are positioning themselves to protect their sovereignty, defend their competing territorial claims, and develop significant natural resources. Future disputes could involve shipping routes, potential environmental degradation, and local residents’ concerns, as well as how best to combat terrorism and transnational crimes. The U.S. faces the challenge of how to protect its national interests in the region, especially how it will do so under a unified combatant command. Four defense experts explain why the European Command should take the lead and detail the top priorities for U.S. national security—from missile defense to maritime security operationsMon, 28 Mar 2011 17:16:00 -0400{F7DDC01C-2AE7-463A-9A62-1E019D2CD5D6}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2010/12/the-ottawa-mine-ban-convention-unacceptable-on-substance-and-processBy announcing a review of U.S. landmine policy, the Obama Administration has reopened the possibility that the U.S. could become a party to the fatally flawed Ottawa Convention, which bans the use of all anti-personnel landmines. Such a ban applied to the U.S. would seriously degrade the ability of the U.S. to defend itself and its allies, particularly in Korea. Furthermore, the very process by which the convention was created is objectionable because it undermines responsible diplomacy and the sovereignty of the United States and other nation-states. The U.S. should shun the Ottawa Convention and the associated process, and instead pursue reasonable arms control through serious diplomacy.Mon, 13 Dec 2010 09:22:00 -0500{136DF2F4-785E-4204-9A31-39045F472D80}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2010/12/treaty-ratification-during-lame-duck-sessionsNo major treaty has ever been ratified by the Senate during a lame duck session of Congress.Thu, 09 Dec 2010 10:55:00 -0500{F8A32045-8970-4622-ABEC-496B028A3F4E}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2010/12/five-controversial-treaties-to-be-wary-of-in-2011Senators who are skeptical of unreliable treaty partners and multinational, aspirational conventions should stay alert in 2011.Wed, 01 Dec 2010 11:37:00 -0500{CD1F5565-757B-4800-9568-CD6C72C76B70}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/testimony/womens-rights-are-human-rightsRatification of CEDAW would neither advance U.S. national interests within the international community nor enhance the rights of women in the United States. Domestically, CEDAW membership would not improve our existing comprehensive statutory framework or strengthen our enforcement system for the protection of women’s rights.Wed, 01 Dec 2010 00:00:00 -0500{95933D36-B8D3-4AE8-AF79-FB0167073A3D}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/lecture/2010/11/the-obama-doctrine-hindering-american-foreign-policyThe President has not yet defined the Obama Doctrine but its features are emerging through his statements and actions. These include a growing reliance on international organizations, a greater sense of humility about American values and foreign policy achievements, a reliance on foreign aid rather than military power, among other things. It is a value-neutral approach that rejects the concept of American exceptionalism. Essentially, the President hopes that if every nation can be brought to the table, they will eventually agree. In this analysis, the world is like a puzzle of equally valuable pieces that can be made to fit together. Unfortunately, other nations like Russia and China look at the world as if it were a game of chess and are moving swiftly to outmaneuver the United States. In the short term, American foreign policy is difficult to change dramatically because there are so many nonpolitical actors involved throughout the “permanent government.” The Iraq and Afghanistan deployments have been harder to wind down than President Obama foresaw, and Guantanamo Bay remains open for business. Yet with two presidential terms, much damage could be done with serious consequences for America’s ability to be a global leader.Mon, 29 Nov 2010 09:19:00 -0500{EBDA4F7D-D31C-4390-8342-FAA3C16F891B}http://www.heritage.org/sitecore/content/home/research/reports/2010/11/us-targeted-by-human-rights-abusers-at-its-universal-periodic-reviewThe Administration’s decision to elevate and legitimize the deeply flawed HRC gives the UPR process similar credibility.Fri, 05 Nov 2010 17:32:00 -0400