112
votes
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Is there a strong legal guarantee that the U.S. can give to another country that it won't attack them?
No such guarantee would be meaningful if the US administration and congress change their opinion. Whatever they write in law or sign, they can undo -- if not legally then in practice.
The US had ...
- 104k
101
votes
Why does Russia see NATO as an aggressor when the Istanbul document signed by Russia grants each participant the right to chose its allies separately?
Russia (the Russian government) claims to believe that Ukraine and Europe are not sovereign actors, but rather controlled by the US. I do not know if they actually do believe that, but considering ...
- 104k
98
votes
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Why hasn't the U.S. government paid war reparations to any country it attacked?
The answer is right in the Wikipedia page you cited (emphasis added):
War reparations are compensation payments made after a war by the vanquished to the victors.
The United States has not been ...
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86
votes
Why is it not an invasion if Russia sends troops into Ukraine?
If the breakaway 'republics' are sovereign, which Russia now accepts but which the international community does not accept, Russia would be defending two allies at the invitation of those allies. Not ...
- 104k
84
votes
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Why are the United States government as well as many others supporting Taiwanese sovereignty despite its own anti secession laws?
I'm from Taiwan, so I'll answer with some local perspective.
There is a law on the books that says if Taiwan does not bend
diplomatically they will try to make it part of China by force.
The first ...
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76
votes
When is violent civil unrest defined as a civil war?
This is usually left for the historians to sort out.
The key point at which something is a "war" is when potentially lethal unprovoked violence is not treated as a criminal matter, but as a ...
- 113k
75
votes
What is the fundamental difference between whaling and hunting other animals?
I think there are two main reasons. Ethics (which does apply to dogs in many parts of the world) and the fact that there aren't that many whales (as opposed to dogs).
Ethics
It's seen as immoral. ...
JJJ♦
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75
votes
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Can a country be only de jure sovereign ? (Such as Andorra)
In a way you are doing word games. International law has developed as customary law. There is no nature-given or God-given definition of sovereignty, it is merely a verbal shortcut to describe a whole ...
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70
votes
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Can I (a random person in the world) be prosecuted under the new Hong Kong security law?
How far applicable the law of a country is is decided by the law of that country. If other countries disagree, they can obviously decline to assist in the enforcement of those laws, and disallow the ...
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69
votes
Accepted
What international laws might prohibit Brazil from cutting down the Amazon or using it as a natural resource of Brazil?
what international laws bar or place limits on how Brazil can use the
Amazon keeping in mind the Brazilian government has jurisdiction over
Brazilian land.
There are no such international laws.
A ...
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67
votes
What is the fundamental difference between whaling and hunting other animals?
There is an ethical argument that hasn't been mentioned yet.
Many people find whale hunting unethical (see JJJs excellent answer), despite supporting deer hunting and chicken farming, because we think ...
- 47.4k
61
votes
Why isn't any unprovoked act of aggression considered a war crime?
An actual judicial definition of these crimes can be found in the Rome Statute that established the International Criminal Court. The statute distinguishes 4 crimes:
The crime of genocide;
Crimes ...
- 3,617
56
votes
Accepted
Why do US tech companies honor rulings by the EU when they don't have jurisdiction?
If the companies ignore the laws of the European Union (EU), then the EU can fine them. The United States (US) may refuse to collect on the fines, but even so, the example company is doing business ...
- 89.2k
56
votes
Why are the territories gained by Israel in 1967 not internationally recognized?
The general philosophy of post-WWII international order is that the inhabitants of a territory are entitled to self-determination. While there are still many political and historical obstacles to the ...
- 15.2k
54
votes
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Can a country avoid prosecution for crimes against humanity by denying it happened?
Your question is slightly at odds with reality.
First off, with the important exception of the US government, nobody sensible is quibbling over the mounting amount of evidence that Agent Orange had ...
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51
votes
Why hasn't the U.S. government paid war reparations to any country it attacked?
The agreement to pay war reparations is usually part of a peace treaty. It is usually a demand the superior party makes from the inferior party in exchange for peace.
In any wars where the United ...
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50
votes
Accepted
Are power plants legitimate military targets under international law?
There’s nothing that I’m aware of in international law prohibiting the targeting of power plants in general - except for the blanket protection given to civilian objects defined in Article 52 of ...
CDJB♦
- 102k
49
votes
What is the fundamental difference between whaling and hunting other animals?
One undiscussed reason that Japanese whaling is so specifically opposed by certain nations (specifically New Zealand & Australia) is that much of the Japanese whaling happens in the Southern Ocean,...
- 1,335
48
votes
Accepted
Isn't sending weapons to Ukraine an escalation?
First, weapons can be delivered through Poland:
Reznikov (Ukrainian Defense Minister), in his video, tried to provide an answer. “You may deliver it to Poland,” he told potential donors. “From there, ...
46
votes
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Are nations required to allow their own citizens entry under international law?
The ability to return to your country is considered a human right, Article 13(2) of the declaration of human rights and also Article 12 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
...
- 104k
46
votes
Accepted
Even if by accident, is the act of military men showing up in a foreign country in full uniform considered an invasion?
It depends on what you mean by "invasion." To the best of my knowledge, there is no single treaty that offers a uniform, widely-accepted definition of this term in the context of ...
- 8,789
44
votes
Why are the United States government as well as many others supporting Taiwanese sovereignty despite its own anti secession laws?
a country which could be argued to have seceded
Secession means that a territory is leaving a nation.
That's not quite what happened in this case. To briefly recap history, 1911 saw the creation of ...
- 3,617
41
votes
Accepted
Why is it not an invasion if Russia sends troops into Ukraine?
Part of what makes this question a bit thorny is the Western position that Russia already had troops in the breakaway regions. So arguably Russia sending in troops could be considered them bolstering ...
- 8,252
40
votes
Can I (a random person in the world) be prosecuted under the new Hong Kong security law?
It is quite common for countries to prosecute both actions by and against their nationals as soon as the perpetrator enters their jurisdiction. Some will also prosecute certain crimes by anyone who is ...
- 104k
40
votes
Accepted
Did Russia violate international laws in Ukraine and if so, how?
The EU Council has accused Russia of multiple breaches of international laws and agreements, and has helpfully enumerated them in its condemnation of its actions:
On 22 February 2022, the High ...
CDJB♦
- 102k
38
votes
Accepted
Does nuclear propulsion applied to military ships fall under civil or military nuclear power?
The treaty you're thinking of is the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (also known as the NPT or NNPT). The core of this treaty for non-nuclear weapon states is Article II, which says
...
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38
votes
Why, according to the UN, "gender-biased abortion" is against human rights but "abortion in general" is not?
"Unborn baby" is not a protected characteristic and hence the "unborn" cannot be discriminated against. Many would argue that the "unborn" are not legally persons and as ...
- 2,581
37
votes
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Under what law can the U.S. arrest International Criminal Court (ICC) judges over war crimes probe?
The ICC has approximately no legal status under the US Constitution. In particular:
It is not an Article III (federal) court because it was not established by Congress.
It is not treated as a foreign ...
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37
votes
Accepted
Does the Chinese Consulate in Houston have to comply with the closure order?
Doesn't China have to comply with this closure order?
I'd say so. Per Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, of which China is a signatory:
TERMINATION OF THE FUNCTIONS OF A MEMBER OF A CONSULAR ...
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37
votes
How does debt-trap diplomacy work?
No, China is unlikely to invade any countries which refuses to pay their debt. No, they will do something far worse: They will tell the rating agencies!
Every government has a credit rating assigned ...
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