Arms Control and Disarmament

DIETER FLECK,ERWIN DAHINDEN,BAKHTIYAR TUZMUKHAMEDOV,MAUREEN WILLIAMS

Berlín

Congreso; 71st Conference of the International Law Association, Berlín; 2004

To investigate the manner in which the principles and rules of international law may contribute to the control or reduction of armaments and military forces and to the reduction of the risk of armed conflict, with special regard to any shortcomings that may be found, offering recommendations for improvement where appropriate. This mandate requires a comprehensive assessment of principles and rules of international law as relevant for arms control and disarmament without, however, evaluating the effectiveness of arms control negotiations or implementing processes. Substantive guidelines developed under this mandate stressed the relevance of varying national approaches to arms control and disarmament law. As for most of the other ILA Committees, the mandate of the Committee, originally terminated until November 2001, was renewed by the Executive Council on 13 November 1999 for two years and prolonged on 2 April 2002 for another two years, i.e. after the Berlin Conference. Arms control and disarmament law as an area which is very much developed by politicians, diplomats and government experts, but which likewise deserves and requires increasing attention in academic research. The legal aspects of arms control and disarmament constitute a new discipline of international law which could not be fully assessed and adequately put into practice if other disciplines of law were not duly taken into account. Main activities of the Committee’s work have been devoted to investigating the manner in which the legal method may best be utilised for the achievement of arms control and disarmament law goals identified by States. The Committee has been moving toward consensus positions and all five Reports have met with wide support at the respective ILA Conferences. The diligent, although necessarily limited, contribution by the Committee to global and regional developments has widely been recognised.