Succession of states
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Succession of states is a theory in international politics regarding the acceptance by other states of a newly created state, based on a perceived historical relationship with a prior state. It may refer to the transfer of rights, obligations, and/or property from a prior state to the successor state and has its root in 19th century diplomacy.
Transfer of rights, obligations, and property can include overseas assets (embassies, monetary reserves, museum artifacts), participation in treaties, membership in international organizations, and debts. Often a state chooses piecemeal whether or not it wants to be considered the successor state. A special case arises, however, when the predecessor state was signatory to a human rights treaty, since it would be desirable to hold the successor state accountable to the terms of that treaty, regardless of the successor state's desires.
In an attempt to codify the rules of succession of states the Vienna Convention on Succession of States in respect of Treaties was drafted in 1978. It entered into force on November 6, 1996. [1]
One recent example of state succession occurred with the dissolution of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1991. The Russian Federation was declared the USSR's successor state and acquired the USSR's seat as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council; see Russia's membership in the United Nations.
In general the theory is followed in the world community: a new government might be distasteful to others but pragmatically it must be recognized if it exercises de facto control over all of the predecessor state's territory.
[edit] Exceptions
There are several recent examples where succession of states, as described above, has not been entirely adhered to:
- When the Democratic Kampuchea regime of Pol Pot was militarily displaced by the Vietnamese-backed People's Republic of Cambodia, the United Nations seat continued to be held by Democratic Kampuchea for many years.
- The Taliban state (the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan) in Afghanistan became the de facto government of nearly all the country in the mid-1990s, but the Afghan Northern Alliance was still recognised by many nations and retained the UN seat.
- After four of the six constituent republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia seceded in 1991 and 1992, the rump state, renamed the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, claimed to be the legal successor, but was not recognised as such by the United States, and because of its influence, neither by the United Nations on the theory that the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia had dissolved. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (later renamed Serbia and Montenegro) was admitted to membership in the United Nations in 2000; recently, Montenegro declared independence and Serbia inherited the seat.
- The People's Republic of China (PRC) was declared in 1949 as the successor state of the Republic of China (ROC) and exercised sovereignty over mainland China, but the ROC maintained a seat on the Security Council for many years. Eventually, the PRC was admitted to the Security Council in 1972 in place of the ROC.
