Treaty

This article is about an agreement valid in the scope of international law entered into by countries in international law. For other uses, see Treaty (disambiguation).
"Treaties" redirects here. Not to be confused with Treatise.

The Egyptian–Hittite peace treaty, on display at the Istanbul Archaeology Museum, is believed to be the earliest example of any written international agreement of any kind.

A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement concluded by sovereign states in international law.[1][2] International organizations can also be party to an international treaty.[1] A treaty is binding under international law.

A treaty may also be known as an international agreement, protocol, covenant, convention, pact, or exchange of letters, among other terms. However, only documents that are legally binding on the parties are considered treaties under international law.[3] Treaties vary in their obligations (the extent to which states are bound to the rules), precision (the extent to which the rules are unambiguous), and delegation (the extent to which third parties have authority to interpret, apply and make rules).[4][5]

Treaties are among the earliest manifestations of international relations; the first known example is a border agreement between the Sumerian city-states of Lagash and Umma around 3100 BC.[6] International agreements were used in some form by most major civilizations, and became increasingly common and more sophisticated during the early modern era.[7] The early 19th century saw developments in diplomacy, foreign policy, and international law reflected by the widespread use of treaties. The 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties codified these practices and established rules and guidelines for creating, amending, interpreting, and terminating treaties, and for resolving disputes and alleged breaches.[8][9]

Treaties are roughly analogous to contracts in that they establish the rights and binding obligations of the parties.[10][11] They vary significantly in form, substance, and complexity and govern a wide variety of matters, such as security, trade, environment, and human rights. Treaties may be bilateral (between two countries) or multilateral (involving more than two countries). They may also be used to establish international institutions, such as the International Criminal Court and the United Nations, for which they often provide a governing framework. Treaties serve as primary sources of international law and have codified or established most international legal principles since the early 20th century.[12] In contrast with other sources of international law, such as customary international law, treaties are only binding on the parties that have signed and ratified them.

Notwithstanding the Law of Treaties and customary international law, treaties are not required to follow any standard form.[12] Nevertheless, all valid treaties must comply with the legal principle of pacta sunt servanda (Latin: "agreements must be kept"), under which parties are committed to perform their duties and honor their agreements in good faith. A treaty may also be invalidated, and thus rendered unenforceable, if it violates a preemptory norm (jus cogens), such as permitting a war of aggression or crimes against humanity.[13]

  1. ^ a b Odering, Jason. "Library Guides: Public International Law: Treaties". unimelb.libguides.com. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  2. ^ Government of Canada, Department of Justice (3 February 2012). "Definitions". www.justice.gc.ca. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  3. ^ In United States constitutional law, the term "treaty" has a special meaning which is more restricted than its meaning in international law; see United States law below.
  4. ^ Simmons, Beth (2010). "Treaty Compliance and Violation". Annual Review of Political Science. 13 (1): 273–296. doi:10.1146/annurev.polisci.12.040907.132713. ISSN 1094-2939. S2CID 42096276.
  5. ^ Abbott, Kenneth W.; Keohane, Robert O.; Moravcsik, Andrew; Slaughter, Anne-Marie; Snidal, Duncan (2000). "The Concept of Legalization". International Organization. 54 (3): 401–419. doi:10.1162/002081800551271. ISSN 1531-5088. S2CID 16285815. Archived from the original on 18 August 2022. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  6. ^ Nussbaum, Arthur (1954). A concise history of the law of nations. pp. 1–2.
  7. ^ "diplomacy - History of diplomacy | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Archived from the original on 10 January 2022. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  8. ^ Malgosia, Fitzmaurice (2010). "Treaties". Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law. doi:10.1093/law:epil/9780199231690/e1481. ISBN 978-0-19-923169-0. Archived from the original on 25 March 2020. Retrieved 26 July 2019.
  9. ^ Orakhelashvili, Alexander (2018). Akehurst's Modern Introduction to International Law. Routledge. p. 251. doi:10.4324/9780429439391. ISBN 978-0-429-43939-1. S2CID 159062874.
  10. ^ Druzin, Bryan (2014). "Opening the Machinery of Private Order: Public International Law as a Form of Private Ordering". Saint Louis University Law Journal. 58: 452–456. Archived from the original on 2 October 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  11. ^ "Definition of TREATY". www.merriam-webster.com. Archived from the original on 1 June 2020. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  12. ^ a b "treaty | Definition, Examples, & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Archived from the original on 28 November 2020. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  13. ^ Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, Article 53, May 23, 1969, 1155 U.N.T.S 331, 8 International Legal Materials 679 (1969)