On The Basic Legal Principles Of Solving International Territorial Disputes

Compared to the research of the procedural rules of maritime delimitation, that of the legal criterion and procedural rules of the land and island delimitation is still not perfect, so it's necessary to carry on the discussion of the basic principles and relevant criterions of the land and island delimitation. First, Pacta Sunt Servanda Principle is the leading principle of solving territorial disputes; international treaty is the overriding criterion of solving territorial disputes. Second, when international treaties do not exist or they are invalid, the Court followed Uti Possidetis Juris Principle or Effective Control Principle to solve territorial disputes. As there are many former colonial countries in the world, compared to Effective Control Principle, Uti Possidetis Juris Principle must receive priority application in the background of colonization. Applying Uti Possidetis Juris Principle to solve territorial disputes is to recognize that the territory that the Colonial Countries have occupied is in accord with international law when they are getting independent. When they are getting independent, the existing borders are statutory international borders,without reference to the borders belonging to the territories of different colonial countries, or belonging to the different administrative areas or colonies of the same colonial country. Since the day they got independence, the territory they occupied is their territory, their territorial boundaries under international law should be given respect. The application of Uti Possidetis Juris Principle to solve territorial disputes is necessary and feasible in theory and practice. Third, Effective Control Principle is an essential important principle following the first two basic principles to solve territorial disputes. Only when the state parties'evidences of effective control are incompatible, the court turns to decide a case ex aequo et bono. In conclusion, through analyzing the typical cases of I.C.J., we can see that the International Court of Justice successively exercises the principles of Pacta Sunt Servanda, Uti Possidetis Juris and Effective Control to solve international territorial disputes.