Self-Determination and Secession in International Law

Sinthiou Estelle Buszewski, German Yearbook of International Law Provides an impressive collection of analytical chapters and case studies... The beauty of the book is the comprehensive analysis of various frozen conflicts including normative assessments and case studies all viewed in the light of the Kosovo Advisory Opinion of the ICJ.


Professor Milena Sterio, Melbourne Journal of International Law Self-Determination and Secession in International Law is a valuable scholarly contribution to this developing area of law...it is a timely and thorough addition to already existing literature on self-determination and secession.

Christian Walter, Professor of Law, Ludwig-Maximilian-Universitat, Antje von Ungern-Sternberg, Lecturer in Law, Ludwig-Maximilian-Universitat, Kavus Abushov, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy Christian Walter is Professor of Law at the Ludwig-Maximilian-Universitat, Munich. Previously, he worked as a research fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and Public International Law, Heidelberg, clerked at the German Federal Constitutional Court, and was as a professor of law at the Friedrich-Schiller-Universitat Jena and at the Westfalische-Wilhelms-Universitat, Munster. His research focuses on general questions of Public International Law, Comparative Law, and Law and Religion. Antje von Ungern-Sternberg is Lecturer of Law at the Ludwig-Maximilian-Universitat, Munich. After graduating in law and history, she worked as an academic assistant at the Westfalische-Wilhelms-Universitat, Munster, and clerked at the German Federal Constitutional Court. Her research interests include general questions of Public International Law, Comparative Law, and Law and Religion. Kavus Abushov is Assistant Professor of Political Science, Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy, Baku. He received his PhD in political science from the Westfalische-Wilhelms-Universitat, Munster. He has taught at the University of Munster and held guest lectures at Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, MIT, University of Toulouse, and the Geneva Centre for Security Policy. His research interests include international relations theory and foreign policy analysis, international relations, and transition processes of the post-Soviet space.

1. Introduction ; PART I: GENERAL ISSUES OF SELF-DETERMINATION AND SECESSION ; 2. International Law and Self-determination: Peoples, Minorities, and Indigenous Peoples ; 3. The Role of Recognition and Non-Recognition with Regard to Secession ; 4. Secession and Use of Force ; 5. The Principle of "Uti Possidetis Juris": How Relevant Is It for Issues of Secession? ; 6. Recent Developments: The Kosovo Advisory Opinion: What It Says and What It Does Not Say ; 7. Secession in the CIS: Causes, Consequences, and Emerging Principles ; PART II: CASE STUDIES FROM THE COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES ; 8. Transnistria ; 9. South Ossetia ; 10. Abkhazia ; 11. Nagorno-Karabach ; PART III: COMPARATIVE STUDIES ; 12. Kosovo ; 13. Western Sahara ; 14. Eritrea