Unit 1 the public international law

Task 1. Make sure you know the meaning of the words and their definitions below

customary law	a body of rules made in accordance with custom or habitual practice
adhere to	follow exactly
grant and withdrawal of nationality	acquiring and deprivation of citizenship
without prejudice to the rights of third parties	without damage of the rights of third parties
reasonableness	correctness
equity	fairness, impartiality
make reparation	compensate, reimburse
disentitle	deprive of a right
undertaking	agreement, obligation, commitment
acquiescence	obedience without protest
enter into an agreement	conclude an agreement
exercise lawmaking functions	perform legislative functions

Task 2. Read and translate the text

International law, also called PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW, or LAW OF NATIONS, is the body of legal rules that are applied between sovereign states and other entities having international personality. International law means public international law as distinguished from private international law, which deals with the differences between the municipal or internal laws of different countries.

International law has developed from the necessity of nations to coexist peacefully. Although there is no effective international law-enforcing body, individual states have shown an increasing willingness to adhere to legal principles of mutual cooperation. In fact, many states now incorporate agreed principles of international law into their own municipal jurisdictions.

International law is generated by three discrete processes: by the process of 1) international customary law, 2) by treaties, and 3) by general principles of law recognized by civilized nations.

The basic rules of international customary law can be summarized in the following fundamental principles: sovereignty, recognition, consent, good faith, freedom of the seas, international responsibility, and self-defense.

Rules of sovereignty define the limits of jurisdiction that subjects of international law have over their own territory as well as over persons and things outside their territory.

The rules of recognition cover situations such as the co-option of new subjects of international law, the recognition of the territorial claims of another state, and the grant and withdrawal of nationality.

The rules of consent enable subjects of international law, when entering into an agreement, to modify and to supplement as they see fit, but without prejudice to the rights of third parties, any of the rules of international customary law or the general principles of law recognized by civilized nations.

Good faith characterizes the spirit in which parties must interpret and execute that engagement; good faith is identified with the requirements of reasonableness, common sense, and equity.

The rules protecting the freedom of the seas preclude the appropriation by any individual subject of international law of any portion of the high seas as distinct from the subsoil and bed of the sea.

The rules of international responsibility can be reduced to two propositions, namely, that the breach of any international obligation by the organ of a subject of international law constitutes an illegal act, or international tort, and that the subject has a duty to make reparation.

The rules of self-defense mainly govern the measures that may be taken against illegal acts attributable to another subject of international law and against acts of individuals, ships, or aircraft that disentitle any other subject of international law from the grant of protection.

International law is also created by treaties. Treaties and other consensual engagements are legally binding undertakings by which the subjects of international law may declare, modify, or develop existing international law as they see fit or agree on transactions.

Among the bodies of international rules governed by treaties and other agreements, five are of special significance: territory, diplomatic law, and immunity; the protection of nationals abroad; freedom of commerce and navigation; extradition and asylum; and succession to international rights and obligations.

Global multipurpose institutions such as the United Nations play an important role in the development of international law. Their impact on international law is threefold: they have been responsible for the modification, by express consent, of the rules underlying the fundamental principles of international law, for the indirect modification of these rules by acquiescence on the part of member states in the action of organs not actually authorized to exercise lawmaking functions, and for the initiation of the further codification and development of international law.