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Lawyers express their opinions mainly by writing. In particular, legal scholars are obliged to write scholarly papers and publish them. A good lawyer also includes being a good writer. However, it is not easy for young lawyers or law students to write a good, scholarly paper. To be a good writer, they should possess discipline. Nonetheless, there are a few practical guidelines for young lawyers or law students to refer to when they begin writing scholarly articles. The primary purpose of this research is to present the core guidelines of scholarly legal writing-what to consider and what to avoid - for beginners; following the author's experience of editing globally recognized journals in international law as well as writing and publishing scholarly papers at leading academic law magazines in the world. This research paper contains the meaning of good scholarly legal paper, topic and title, research methodology, writing, referencing, research ethics and publication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper summarizes and assesses the international trend, both in doctrine and in legal provisions dealing with conflict of laws in intellectual property field and reviews the relevant provisions in the Part 5th on applicable law to civil relations evolving foreign elements of the Vietnam’s 2015 Civil Code. The author shows that the two new provisions of the Vietnam’s 2015 Civil Code, namely Article 679 and Article 683, has partly caught up with the international trend in recognizing conflicts of laws and providing choice-of-law rules for resolving these conflicts in the intellectual property relations. The shortcoming of the Vietnam’s 2015 Civil Code is the absence of a particular provision dealing with the conflict of laws in case of infringement of intellectual property rights. On that basis, the paper offers comments and suggestions on the need to make the provisions of the Vietnam’s Civil Code more specific in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to the lack of consensus in formal negotiations, unilateral statements do not create legal obligations on states. Thus, a unilateral statement is not considered a source of international law under Article 38 of the Statute of the International Court of Justice. In practice, however, these statements can be legally binding on the states making them and play an important role in the development of international law. The paper aims to examine the characteristics of unilateral declarations and statements in international law and address the Vietnam's position over the legal effects of the Diplomatic Note 1958 with special references to the South China Sea dispute. This paper will analyze the characteristics and significance of unilateral statements in international law, and argue the conditions for legal binding force. Finally, this paper will provide an in-depth clarification on Vietnamese position on the legal effect of the Diplomatic Note 1958. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents factors to consider when designing DeFi regulations. DeFi regulations may be established by imposing obligations on developers and operators, who exist even in extreme decentralization cases. However, the requirements in current financial legislation, which heavily rely on intermediaries' organization and personnel, are difficult to apply to DeFi. Instead, under DeFi, information can be obtained, analyzed, and aggregated on the blockchain and reported to the authority automatically and regulatory requirements may be reflected in the smart contract and automatically executed. This may require mandatory code audits by supervisory authorities and civil technology experts prior to execution, to check whether legal requirements are embedded in the code. In addition, measures addressing the risk-contagion effects in macroeconomic crisis, potentially arising from DeFi's connectivity with traditional finance, must be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since Russia-Ukraine war, India and the United States has enhanced their cooperation as evidenced by the recent engagements. Multiple meetings by officials and leaders including two Quad and 2+2 dialogue summits, have provided a clear stance on each country's perspective on the recent conflict. The US-India dispute regarding Russia-Ukraine war demonstrates that it is a stress test for the US-India ties, as well as a test of the US leadership in the global politics. The balancing act required to settle the differences between the two countries will have implications for the Indo-Pacific region as well as global security, even though the disagreements are not yet mutually incompatible. Strengthening ties with the US is now a tightrope walk for India. While there are differences between the two countries in Ukraine, the real challenge is turning these differences into opportunities. The paper deals with the different issues arising from the Russia and Ukraine conflict in the context of USIndia interface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Syrian crisis has been persisting for more than eleven years, but shows no signs of resolution or end yet. Various reports from the United Nations and other reputable organizations have extensively documented a multitude of atrocities perpetrated by all factions involved in the conflict. This article examines the Syrian crisis from a perspective of international law. The author analyses the legal justifications put forward by the parties involved in the conflict, including humanitarian intervention, the responsibility to protect, etc. This research paper employs an analytical and descriptive research methodology. The finding concludes that the Syrian Civil War is not likely to be over for the foreseeable future in spite of many efforts under international law. The author also finds that there have been numerous violations of international law by both sides in the conflict related to human rights and humanitarian protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The primary purpose of this paper is to know which formulation of FET standard among the diverse drafting approaches best serves the interests of both States and investors. In this respect, the paper first will have a review of general categorization of FET in a number of IIAs. Subsequently, it will focus on the two most controversial formulations of FET: (1) as a standalone clause and (2) with reference to the minimum standard of treatment under customary international law. In light of this, it will discuss the impact of the various FET drafts on the decisions of arbitral tribunals dealing with this standard. Lastly, the paper will also explore the most recent approaches to the formulation of FET to see if they are capable of brining clarity in the overall discussion of FET's formulation as well as interpretation. In short, these recent constructions of FET clauses may best serve these interests as they bring clarity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Criticism has erupted around the world over the paper "Contracting for sex in the Pacific War" written by Mark Ramseyer, a Mitsubishi professor at Harvard University Law School. Ramseyer insists tha "comfort women" by Japanese imperial military made "credible contracts" with recruiters regardless of the Japanese government or the Japanese military. Ramseyer further insists that the "comfort women" were certified prostitutes. However, the Japanese government selected recruiters secretly and provided them with convenience in mobilizing women. Recruiters have deceived women, mainly by job fraud, into kidnapping them to military brothels. The recruiters signed with Japanese women as barmaids (shakuhu), meaning women who served drinks. However, the Japanese military brothels were prohibited from drinking. Almost Korean women were illiterate in 1940's, so recruiters did not make contract papers with them. It was very easy to deceive Korean women to make sexual slaves of Japanese military. The surviving Japanese military's surgeon or soldiers testified that Korean "comfort women" had been sexual slaves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea admitted legislation and enforcement jurisdiction carried out by the flag state. However, the emergence of substandard ships and the growing number of ship accidents at sea indicate that flag state jurisdiction is far from effective. Four aspects of these failures are examined in this paper. Confronted with the failure of flag state jurisdiction, port states have devised a subsidiary remedy to ensure their national interests and restore the effectiveness of flag state jurisdiction. A problem hereunder arises because non-explicit permission was given to port states to prosecute substandard ships. Thus, this paper further analyses four aspects of port state jurisdiction. The authors aim to analyse the failures and remedies associated with state jurisdiction over ships. It reviews the scope and deficiency of state jurisdiction in combatting substandard ships and illicit activities at sea. This paper also addresses the importance of port state control, regional memorandums of understanding and international conventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on critical anti-corruption measures taken by the State of Kuwait and the international community, specifically as they relate to the implementation of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC). Specific provisions of Nazaha Law, particularly those related to crimes and persons under its jurisdiction, are compared to the UNCAC, shedding light on the inherent advantages and disadvantages of the Law and whether the law constitutes a sufficient domestic anticorruption measure. By focusing on specific statutes and related jurisdictional matters, significant discrepancies between Nazaha Law and the UNCAC are noted. Kuwaiti legislators should immediately consider these discrepancies to ensure a more effective domestic policy in the global campaign against corruption. This paper comprises five parts including the Introduction and Conclusion. Part two will detail the various types of corruption covered by the Nazaha Law. Part three will focus on the persons covered under Nazaha jurisdiction. Part four will expound the issues of legal jurisdiction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing may occur on the high seas or within a national jurisdiction. Several factors were identified as contributing to the occurrence of IUU fishing activities, among which is poor governance marked by limited and overlapping enforcement by related authorities. With very limited regional enforcement bodies and the absence of a regional multilateral agreement, IUU fishing is difficult to overcome. It means that issues relating to overfishing and other fishing conflicts like foreign vessels intrusions and use of illegal fishing methods will continue to be a problem. This paper identifies the Malaysia's legal framework governing IUU fishing, as well as relevant international and regional laws and policies. The paper also discusses the devastating effects of IUU fishing to the global fish stocks and national economy. Although the existing framework is considered comprehensive, it recommends further stringent and fair law enforcement to combat IUU fishing in Malaysia's waters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-discrimination is a fundamental principle of the World Trade Organization (WTO), which promotes global trade with the goal of eradicating hunger, reducing poverty, and ensuring global prosperity. According to the WTO rules, members are required to give other members most-favoured-nation and national treatment. Due to the military conflict between the Russian Federation and Ukraine, the United States, European Union, and several other member countries suspended most-favoured-nation treatment for Russian goods in mid-March 2022. This study examines the principle of non-discrimination under the WTO provisions, identifies relevant exceptions, analyses the Russia-Traffic in Transit case, and evaluates the appropriateness of the above actions by the US and others. Finally, this paper concludes that the US and its allies failed to present concrete evidence demonstrating a direct and causal relationship between the military situation in Ukraine and their own essential interests under Article XXI of GATT 1994. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On January 4, 2020, the official Twitter account of the former US President Trump threatens to target Iran's cultural heritage sites conditioned on any Iranian retaliation on US military forces then stationed in the Middle East. The immediate context was that the US-led drone strike had killed Iran's Major General Qasem Soleimani in Iraq (Baghdad) only two days prior. This study critically analyzes whether "Tweets" uploaded to President Trump's Twitter account could reasonably be construed as a type of harm against international law instruments and framework on the safeguarding of cultural heritage. This paper provides a brief contextual overview of President Trump's Tweets; traces the historical destruction of cultural property during conflicts and discusses the preservation of heritage; delineates international laws and assesses whether President Trump and the US might be legally bound to refrain from threats to destroy cultural property; and examines the increasing role of social media in the evolution of the idea of diplomacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the beginning of the seventh century, Islamic law has played an essential role in protecting the personal, economic, judicial, and political rights of civilians during armed conflict. Fourteen centuries before the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was drafted in 1948, it had already initiated a human revolution consisting of a set of human principles. In addition, Islamic law has made a significant contribution to international humanitarian law (IHL). This paper focuses on two specific legal constructs in warfare: the definition of the combatant and the principle of distinction. This article comparatively examines how these two laws deal with different aspects of war that fall under jus ad bellum, jus in bello, and jus post bellum. A comparative analysis of the various elements and aspects of just war theory in Islamic and contemporary international law provides a much deeper understanding of its limitations. We can safely conclude that there is a unique relationship between the Islamic law of war and IHL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the need to strengthen the law applicable to Flag of Convenience (FoC) States and vessels with the goal of sustaining fish stocks and combatting overfishing on the high seas. FoC States and vessels can escape law enforcement conducted by the other flag states. Due to the lack of political will of FoC States to enforce the law and obligations imposed on FoC vessels to conduct conservation on the high seas, FoC vessels instead contribute significantly to the deterioration of fish stocks on the high seas. FoC vessels overexploit these resources and engage in illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, which harms the fish stocks on the high seas. The results of the study indicate that there are some legal lacunas in international legal obligations for FoC States and vessels to conserve the fish stocks on the high seas. Existing international legal instruments are ineffective in combating over-exploitation of fish stocks on the high seas by FoC vessels. Hence, strengthen the laws applicable to the FoC States and FoC vessels is urgently needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the early days of the UN, human rights was one of the most pressing issues. After the UN Commission on Human Rights was established, the international community began to draft the UDHR. By exploring UN archives, this paper finds that during that process, Pengchun Chang (P. C. Chang), the Chinese representative, drew heavily on his view that human dignity was the raison d'être of human rights, and as a consequence recognition of the importance of human dignity was a key element in the UDHR eventually adopted. I conclude that Chang was skilled in his advocacy of the recognition of human dignity as he persuaded people to reach a consensus on human rights standards, providing a common standard for all peoples and all nations. This paper will mainly ask: What was the role of human dignity in P. C. Chang's idea on human rights? What role can we say human dignity played? How did the UDHR treat the issue of human dignity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kazakhstan is one of the few countries worldwide endowed with a wealth of diverse natural resources. However, the country has yet to fully exploit these resources, for a variety of reasons, including high levels of corruption, ambiguous laws that cause confusion to the judiciary and consumers. The aim of this paper is to explore the exploitation of natural resource in the country from an international legal perspective. The article demonstrates how corruption hinders the exploitation of natural resources in Kazakhstan. It also describes how the current law seeks to address the issue of natural resource exploitation, noting its ambiguities. The paper concludes by highlighting the provisions made in the UN Declaration concerning Rights to Exploit Natural Resources, and makes recommendations concerning how Kazakhstan's government can promote the rights of citizens to enjoy access to the land and natural resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Law reacts to the progression of scientific technology in the end. Though conservative, changes are beginning to take place due to Artificial Intelligence (AI). AI is automating conventional legal works, creating a new industry namely Legal-Tech. This paper investigates the characteristics and flow of legal-AI and computational law while focusing on the applicability of AI to international law. Mainly, the paper reviews three critical areas: dispute resolution, trial prediction, and machine translation, respectively. International law has different characteristics than the domestic law applied in each country. Unlike domestic law, international law has not been aggregated from a pandect, and it is a still daunting task to draw any meaningful insights for further analysis due mainly to limited data (i.e., trial cases and precedents). Nevertheless, AI is already penetrating the legal ecology system, and international law would eventually accept the influx of such changes exhibiting greater force. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Professor Sienho Yee has recently published a paper in Chinese Journal of International Law, entitled, “Unilateral Sanctions: Kind and Degree; Long-arm and Strong Arm Jurisdiction; Real Intent and ‘Could-be’ Intent.” Yee has ably elaborated that to assess the conduct of unilateral sanctions, there is a need to consider a question of “kind” so as to a question of “degree.” Further, the so-called “long-arm jurisdiction” should be better phrased as “strong-arm jurisdiction” since sometimes long-arm jurisdiction may be lawful, whereas the current version of the long-arm jurisdiction asserted by the United States is so extreme that it is no longer lawful. To this end, attention should be paid to the level of scrutiny or standard of review that a decision-maker would apply to the assessment of intent. Following from Yee’s thoughts, this note would like to elaborate further on another aspect, namely, the proportionality and necessity of unilateral sanctions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United States’ Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) introduces new eligibility requirements for existing USD 7,500 tax-credit provided to electric vehicles. The new requirements condition the credit upon North American final assembly and North American-sourced materials and components. As tensions flare between the US and China, these new local content requirements reflect the US’s effort to establish a supply chain for electric vehicles that circumvents China. The blow, however, is felt elsewhere, namely by South Korean auto makers whose electric vehicle models are no longer eligible for the significant tax-credit necessary to compete in the American market. As South Korea considers submitting a complaint to relevant international bodies, this paper dissects the IRA’s relevant provisions and analyzes the applicability of international trade law rules of the WTO and the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement to the new local content requirements of the IRA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This explorative paper investigates the application of human rights to civil law cases in Indonesia. Human rights are often placed within the realm of public law. Yet, fundamental rights and freedoms also apply to private law cases. The human rights literature, however, does not exist in Indonesian private law. This article explores how human rights are applied in Indonesian civil law cases with reference to the models of human rights application developed by Aharon Barak and Olha Cherednychenko. We found that in Indonesia, judges apply human rights law to civil law cases indirectly, yet this application is inconsistent. The Supreme Court has attempted to increase legal unity by making case law (yurisprudensi) more accessible and by issuing internal regulations that must serve as guidelines for judges-including the application of fundamental rights in civil law cases. Case law and guidelines, however, lack thorough legal reasoning and are, therefore, difficult to apply to complex cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Labour migration is an important global issue that largely affects the labour market. Malaysia is among the popular destination countries for labour migration in Asia. The number of migrant workers that consist of documented and undocumented workers is increasing every year due to rapid economic development that captivates job seekers from undeveloped countries. In this regard, migrant workers frequently fall into the trap of unscrupulous employers who exploit them for their own interests. These employers do not pay their wages as promised and deny them their employment rights. This case is basically treated as 'forced labour' or 'human trafficking' by the Malaysian authority. This paper identifies the Malaysia's legal framework of the employment of migrant workers. In addition, how to address the infringed rights of migrant workers is discussed in this paper. Although the framework deems comprehensive, it further recommends a stringent and fair law enforcement to combat exploitation towards migrant workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores Thailand's partial liberalization of the electricity industry and to what extent is a Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) allowed in the electricity sector. As Thailand is an ASEAN Member State, the paper aims to review whether the partial liberalization under the ESB model is consistent with the commitments of the ASEAN. The paper examines both the ACIA and the AFAS, and it finds that Thailand has no commitment under both agreements relevant to entry of a FDI in its electricity sector. However, Thailand already allows the entry of a FDI in the power generation business which is aligned with the principles of market access and National Treatment that fulfill the obligations under the ACIA and the AFAS in case Thailand will make any commitments in the future. It is noted that electricity transmissions and the distribution and supply businesses are still prohibited for both Thai and foreign investors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most of the literature on modern-day slavery focuses on women and children as victims of the sex industry. This disproportionate emphasis on sexual exploitation has resulted in conflation of the term trafficking with prostitution, which has led to an understanding of human trafficking issues as separate from other workplace abuses that amount to slavery. By exploring modern-day slavery in the Southeast Asian fishing industry, this paper may fill a research gap within the study of human trafficking as well as sharpen our awareness of slavery practices, not only in the sex industry, but also in workplaces like fishing vessels and seafood processing factories. This paper will argue that the proximity of modern slavery to sexual exploitation and the lack of differentiation between smuggling and trafficking crime has led to the ignorance of contemporary slavery practices in other sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nexus between science and human rights are intertwined in many ways. Though the acknowledgment in international law have been available for decades, the right to savor the fruits of scientific advancement and its applicability has gained just small recognition of the human rights from the international community. A human rightsbased approach to science, technology, and development endeavors a concern for human rights at the heart of the international community facing with critical global challenges. Thus, the paper initially discusses the relevant international human rights instruments including laws, regulations, declarations, conventions and provides a thorough analysis. The doctrinal and qualitative study of the paper presents human rights approaches in order to show insight on the ethical implications of new technologies and investigate how policy can compete with briskly advancing science. The paper also recommends the international community to promote regulatory processes that can help in blocking the disputes by securing an equilibrium between human rights and science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Space law is normally referred to international space law. As national space activities develop, however, national space laws have been legislated in many countries for the development of space resources. These are used to present conflicting cases between national and international space law (corpus juris spatialis internationalis) on the interpretation of space resource exploitation. This study is devoted to bridging the gap between these two legal systems. In this paper, the author will critically review the fundamental principles of space resource exploitation under international law and suggest a direction for setting up national space laws for future space resources. This paper is composed of seven parts, including a short Introduction and Conclusion. Part two will discuss acts pertaining to asteroid resources. Part three will deal with res extra commercium. Part four will analyze the non-appropriation principle. Part five will look into the common heritage of mankind. Part six will investigate res nullius humanitatus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The WHO reported the Covid-19 outbreak infected 486,761,597 people, involving 6,142,735 deaths worldwide as of 1 April 2022. This contagious disease has spread rapidly throughout the world, including Malaysia. Since the outbreak in Malaysia began in March 2020, the Movement Control Order (MCO) has been implemented nationwide, leaving a significant impact on its citizens, non-citizens, as well as refugees. There is some exploitation of refugees, where enforcement officers are targeting them for criminal offences. Stakeholders claimed the Malaysian government did not provide any assistance to refugees during the pandemic, including health care and economy. This article examines Malaysia’s responsibilities as a host country to refugees during the Covid-19 outbreak. The Malaysian government is proposed to continuously support refugees on humanitarian grounds based on the country’s economic development capabilities. This paper will look into the current situation of the Refugees in Malaysia; discuss the challenges that the Refugees in Malaysia are facing; analyse the legal [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since its founding in 1949, the People's Republic of China has acceded to more than 300 multilateral treaties. Among them, China made reservations to 83 treaties, accounting for nearly 27.7 percent of the total. Evidently, for China, formulating reservations to multilateral treaties is an issue of vital importance in the process of concluding and executing multilateral treaties. This paper examines the three main reasons why China inclines to formulate reservations to the treaties, then argues that the reservations formulated by China, whether in procedure or in substance, are not only in full conformity with the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, but also full of Chinese characteristics. This paper also analyzes several specific reservations that China shall withdraw, and addresses the limitations of China's existing treaty reservation system. Accordingly, this paper concludes that the Chinese government should improve and perfect its treaty reservation system with some suggestions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Every September and October, entities in the palm oil and timber industries in Indonesia conduct slash-and-burn activities over peat land, causing transboundary 'haze' pollution. This paper analyzes the effectiveness of various legal solutions to tackle the transboundary haze pollution. There are mainly three forms of international law, customary international law, the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze 2002 and Singapore's extraterritorial Transboundary Haze Pollution Act 2014. Their effectiveness will be measured by Indonesia's increasing willingness to take domestic enforcement measures. This paper argues that the ASEAN Agreement is the primary instrument despite its lack of sanctions as it is neutral, non-confrontational and consistent with the 'ASEAN way.' The Singapore Act plays a complementary role, yet its invocation may strain relations between Singapore and Indonesia. Ultimately, the three forms of international law serve as a normative and facilitative source in nudging Indonesia to take more stringent domestic enforcement measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most scholars argue that the principle of permanent sovereignty over natural resources (PSNR) has been used by developing countries as a legal basis to exploit their natural resources, including forests, for the sake of economic development. Land conversion and forest burning are the primary causes of forest degradation and deforestation in Indonesia. Thus, the biodiversity of Indonesian tropical forests is decreasing tremendously. This article aims to comprehensively analyze the experiences of the Indonesian government to balance the principle of PSNR and sustainable forest management (SFM). The paper argues that the implementation of the PSNR principle in SFM faces many challenges, such as deforestation, forest degradation, and the failures in implementing laws, as well as weak law enforcement. Therefore, to balance the PSNR principle with SFM, the Indonesian government needs to undertake various efforts, such as strengthening law enforcement, carrying out social forest management, and exercising mandatory forest certification. Moreover, all these efforts need to be further improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to address climate change, the international community established a regulatory framework in addition to adaptation and mitigation strategies being at its core, and adopted "common, but differentiated responsibility" as the fundamental principle behind the international climate change regime. However, the climate change regime has reached an impasse in recent years. This paper suggests that "common and symmetrical responsibility" should become the central organizing principle of the future climate regime in order to resolve disagreements among countries and encourage the initiative by the international community. This paper not only provides an analysis of the "bridging mechanism for adaptation and mitigation," based primarily on the allocation of quantified emissions, limitation and reduction commitments and the sharing of multilateral climate funds, but also discusses the "cut-or-fund" scheme and "cut-and-fund" scheme in in developed and developing States, respectively under this mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent incidents of state terrorism, including the assassination of Kim Jong-Nam, the murder (and attempted murder) of persons with strong ties to Russia, and the Jamal Khashoggi assassination, demonstrate cruelty while implying the involvement of the state, unlike other acts of terrorism since the Second World War. This trend denies the efforts of the international community, which has suppressed physical punishment including the death penalty in modern times and has achieved advances in human rights and humanitarianism under contemporary international law. Accordingly, this paper utilizes Michel Foucault's indications regarding prison to reconsider recent cases of state terrorism from a broader perspective while taking into consideration the historical background of conventional terrorism and the development of international terrorism-related treaties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hybrid dispute settlement mechanism is one of the characteristics of the UNCLOS. It is the combination of diplomatic measures and judicial proceedings. Among them, the ITLOS established in accordance with Annex VI, and two types of arbitral tribunal constituted in accordance with Annexes VII and VIII are means for the disputes settlement firstly regulated in the UNCLOS. Especially, according to Article 287, an arbitral tribunal constituted under Annex VII has default jurisdiction in case one or both parties to a dispute are not covered by a declaration in force, or the parties to a dispute have not accepted the same procedure for the settlement of the dispute. These means of dispute settlement have supplemented and enhanced the source of law for international dispute resolution more diversified. This paper clarifies some aspects of compulsory procedures entailing binding decisions under the UNCLOS, evaluates the applicability of these procedures to the case of Vietnam in the disputes settlement on interpretation or application of the UNCLOS raising among countries in the South China Sea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

So far, eight rounds of China-Japan-Korea FTA negotiations have been conducted. From 2015 on, the negotiations are expected to make great progress. Accordingly, CJK FTA has drawn increasing attention of scholars from multidimensionality. Still, there lacks concerns over the possible arrangement of each specific issue under such framework. Building on prior scholarship, this paper attempts to view such fragmented debate from the perspective of building a new international economic order. It suggests a developing track for CJK FTA to consider in designing its details: WTO→CJK FTA→RCEP(OBOR)→TPP→A New Multilateral Order. Only by so viewing can the important trilateral FTA play an appropriate role in future regional and global governance, so as to obtain the Asian voice in restructuring the international rules. Based on that, this paper further exemplifies a possible stepping stone regarding regional antidumping regimes and proposes adopting the WTO ADA Plus in CJK FTA. Such a proposal would become a crucial 'blueprint' for restructuring the multilateral ADA mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Self-defence has long been understood as an inherent right of a State when it is militarily attacked by another State. After September 11 attacks, however, there have been attempts to reinterpret the meaning of 'armed attack' under Article 51 of the UN Charter to include attacks by terrorists - non-State actors. This paper critically examines the legal and policy considerations that promote a right of self-defence against terrorists by means of thoroughly analyzing the text of the UN Charter, State practice and the jurisprudence of the ICJ. The paper finds that a terrorist attack as such may not be an armed attack within the meaning of Article 51 of the Charter unless it is an act of a State or directly imputable to a State and is on a large scale with substantial effects. The paper concludes that unilateral use of force against a State in the name of self-defence is not the correct way of combating terrorism and that there are effective alternatives such as addressing the root causes of terrorism, resorting to law enforcement mechanisms or coercive countermeasures, and strengthening multilateralism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tokyo trial experienced a judgment circumscribed for a long period for publication during allied occupation years. This is Justice Pal's dissenting judgment at the Tokyo trial; endeavored to seek Justice in a different way, justified 'aggression' not only considering subjective ends, rather extends beyond that. The present paper does not intend to justify the judgment which exceeds author's competence, but also tries to extract the notion of aggression where Justice Radhabinod Pal is experimental. Where all acts are not act of aggression, the main concern is to segregate the concept of act of war and the act of aggression. Assertion becomes crucial when certain use of force can be legitimized under sovereign right of self-defense. This paper tends to clarify these ambiguities concerning the notion of aggression relying on Justice Pal's opinion. Firstly, a progressive attempt has been made to identify the extent of use of force under sovereign right of self-defense, overriding that extent may tantamount to aggression. Then possible means have been drawn to limit the concept of aggression. Finally, the paper would shed brief light on the comparison of Justice Pal's dissenting opinion with contemporaneous legal framework predominantly concerning the notion of aggression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Salvage Convention 1989 establishes the main international legal framework dealing with salvage operations and environmental protection. It is the result of many years of drafting and diplomatic efforts where the treaty was negotiated and concluded. It is undeniable that the Salvage Convention 1989 has encouraged private sector and public authorities to establish and maintain the resources needed to contain ecological damage. This was an important accomplishment. Providing adequate incentives for rapid salvage operation adds to the traditional rewards. Nevertheless, the problems of updating the provisions of the Salvage Convention 1989 need to be addressed and the path ahead is still long and winding. In particular, the importance of environmental considerations is increasingly significant. As a result, modern salvage operations must also take into account measures to prevent damage to the environment. Today's international community is searching for a new salvage regime and law. This paper examines the possibility of building the new salvage regime and its implementation in Thailand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sea-level rise (SLR) is considered one of the most serious consequences of climate change. The risk of SLR compels legal consideration of this phenomenon related to many interrelated domains including the Law of the Sea. The Western Pacific region contains the most low-lying coastal countries and small island States seriously affected by SLR in the world. This research has been carried out as a contribution paper on the State practice in the Western Pacific region to the topic of "Sea-level rise in relation to international law" conducted by the Study Group of the United Nations International Law Commission in the period of 2020-2021. It aims to summarize the consequences of SLR for the Western Pacific States and outline their legal positions in relation to the sea-level rise. It also discusses specific issues, challenges and opportunities facing the Western Pacific States in supporting the maintenance of maritime baselines and limits notwithstanding physical changes caused by SLR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Space debris is a global mounting ultimatum to the enduring maintainability of outer space activities. It ought to be managed from the very beginning. For the last couple of years, collisions have enhanced space debris accumulation, and the rate at which space activities have resulted in the production of debris is at a threshold position in a linear fashion. Ultimately, space has become the rendezvous of space debris. Considering the growing accumulation of debris and the emerging apprehension regarding a horrible strike and collapse of whole space programs, this paper focuses on the legal and administrative challenges. Both developing and developed countries realize the value of a competent regime that could administer, supervise, finance, and promote the research, examination, and development of outer space. Thus, this research suggests an autonomous, competent international space authority be established by a treaty or international agreement following the model of the deep seabed authority because it has similar natural resources but a geographically different location. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transnational money laundering is a global issue that requires international solutions. This paper examines the concept of Free Movement of Judgments which should be realized in the legal integration process of the ASEAN in order to overcome the negative impacts of money laundering. This research will analyze the regulation for criminalizing money laundering in the ASEAN and compare it with the criminal cooperation in the European Union. The ASEAN Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters (MLAT 2004) is expected to be an alternative to an extradition treaty. If adopting the Free Movement of Judgements, judicial decisions of an ASEAN member country regarding transnational crimes of money laundering would be recognized and implemented in other member's jurisdiction reciprocally. This adoption is expected to be an effective solution to overcome impunity in cross-border money laundering actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tensions are high between Korea and Japan as a result of Japan's export restrictions on three essential semiconductor materials exported to Korea and the removal of South Korea from their White List of countries. The Abe Administration announced that these measures were necessary to "ensure non-proliferation of weapons-related materials." However, it is widely suspected that these measures were adopted as a retaliation against the Korean Supreme Court's decision recognizing compensation for the forced labor victims during the Japanese occupation period. The Korean government filed a complaint concerning these measures at the WTO DSB for resolution under international law. In this research, the authors will critically analyze Japan's export restrictions under international law to facilitate a peaceful resolution to the current conflict. This paper will tackle the relevant issues under the WTO/GATT regulations and the Korea-Japan Claims Agreement to address the issue of who violated international law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The UN member states have been consulting on the establishment of high seas MPAs under the BBNJ Agreement since December 2017.This issue brings about the potential conflicts between the jurisdiction of the high seas MPAs and the traditional freedom of the high seas. Although it is generally accepted that the freedom of the high seas can be reasonably restricted, it is acknowledged that there are great controversies among States on the specific forms, approaches and applicable scopes of the restrictions of the high seas freedoms by the high seas MPAs. At present, there are four recognized high seas MPAs in the world. The practice of these four MPAs contributes positively to the interpretation of the reasonable restrictions on the freedom of the high seas. Accordingly, this paper concludes that the international community should gradually carry forward future restrictions on the freedom of the high seas with some suggestions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The right to freedom of religion is one of the fundamental rights guaranteed in many international and regional human rights instruments. Several international documents safeguard freedom of religion including the right to convert from one faith to another. In Malaysia, the safeguard of this fundamental right is provided under Article 11(1) of the Federal Constitution with some limitations. The right to convert out of one' s faith is not mentioned explicitly. However, for the non- Muslims, this right to opt out of one' s faith and choose another has been regarded as an implicit part of religious liberty guaranteed by Article 11. In relation to the Muslims, the issue of apostasy is regarded as a taboo as well as a politically explosive proposition. This paper aims to examine the concept of freedom of religion under international law focusing mainly on the issue of apostasy in the context of the Malaysian Federal Constitution. The paper concludes that the position of Muslims especially in the context of embracing a new religion remains unsettled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The debate on whether antidumping law should be integrated into competition law is a relatively new but very significant one. Building on prior scholarship, this paper attempts to contribute to the debate by reexamining the fundamental justification of antidumping law. An exploration into the economic theories of dumping and the evolution of antidumping law indicates that the current antidumping system neither serves the broad goal of preventing 'unfair trade' nor functions as a 'quasi-safeguard' mechanism. The only rationale for antidumping law is that it deals with international predatory dumping. Modern competition rules target the same predatory conduct but they are more meticulous than antidumping law and are less susceptible to protectionist abuse. In light of this, the paper advocates the substitution of antidumping law by competition law. To achieve this, the paper suggests a gradual approach. Substitution could first be achieved in bilateral and regional trade areas before being implemented at the level of WTO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the doctrine of informalism, its place in the field of jurisprudence and why it influences the international legal system of ASEAN. It analyses the problems associated with the development of ASEAN's international legal system in the context of trade liberalization. It then seeks to answer the question of how ASEAN may enhance trade liberalization through innovations in its legal system and what aspects of an informal legal system may be maintained within a hard-law framework. It does this by analyzing rule-observance in soft law as well as analyzing some examples of flexibility-enabling mechanisms. The paper recommends how instances of legal informalism may be maintained within ASEAN as it seeks to further trade liberalization between its members. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main purpose of this paper is to examine an alternative approach to statebuilding in Somalia to resolve issues regarding maritime piracy off the Somali coast. The sharp increase in piracy in Somalia is often regarded as a consequence of the collapse of the State after 1991. Solutions for curtailing piracy therefore depend upon the reconstruction of the State in Somalia. However, as has been the case in many post-conflict countries, Somalia has experienced a number of unsuccessful attempts at state-building because the current state-building model based on the western conception of statehood does not account for the realities of Somali society. Reviving a unified Somalia is thus counter-productive to securing peace, order and stability. By closely examining state-building approaches, this paper shows that the' mediated state'approach is the most appropriate model not only for resolving issues regarding state-building, but also for tackling the root causes of piracy in Somalia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The US-Korea FTA, in its initial days of negotiation saw severe protests by public and political turmoil in Seoul. After crossing several procedural hoops and political hurdles in parliaments of both countries it became effective in 2012, though it was signed in 2007. At that time, it was considered by the US a 'model agreement' which could open opportunities for the US exporters in the Korean market. However, only couple of years later, the Trump administration called this FTA a 'horrible' deal that has 'destroyed' America. Thus, the Trump administration wanted to scrap the FTA. After considering the political implications of such action, the US government decided to re-negotiate the FTA so that the US concerns are addressed. In a short period of negotiation, both sides agreed to the revised terms of the FTA which has become effective from January 1, 2019. This paper analyses outcomes of the revised US-Korea FTA, 2018 from the US perspective and evaluate if all concerns of the US are met. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate friendly technologies contribute to tackling global climate crisis and the dynamic transfer of these technologies is important to achieve universal climate actions. The UNFCCC, and its recent Paris Agreement, have introduced international assistance to promote climate related-technology transfer. They call for collaborative actions from both technology supplier and demander sides in order to enable environments for a meaningful and effective technology transfer. According to the UNFCCC, the international technology assistance is unlikely to work in a desired way with the absence of indigenous enabling environments. Therefore, it is crucial to identify, assess and overcome potential barriers potentially confronted by host countries in their acquisition of climate technologies, which helps prepare these countries for climate resilience economy and sustainable development. This paper attempts to provide a deep and comprehensive analysis on enabling policy/law environments in host countries and uses Asian countries as examples in most occasions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As goods and services powered by AI continue to proliferate, scholarly opinion seems to consider that current WTO law is insufficient to regulate trade in AI-powered products. The following reasons can help explain this perceived insufficiency of the WTO law: (a) AI-powered products are difficult to categorise within the perceived goods/services dichotomy under WTO law, thus causing uncertainties as to the applicable legal regime; and (b) the WTO law has yet to respond to the need for national governments to strike a balance between trade and controversial trade practices regarding AI-powered products. This paper argues that while current WTO law is far from perfect, it does partly regulate trade in AI-powered products. The following observations substantiate the partial regulation of trade in AI-powered products by the WTO law: (a) AI-powered products cannot escape existing WTO disciplines on trade in goods and trade in services, by virtue of either the involvement of AI or the perceived goods/services dichotomy; and (b) efforts to balance trade/non-trade interests associated with trade in AI-powered products are allowed under the GATT/GATS' 'public morals' and security exceptions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Australia instituted proceedings against Japan before the International Court of Justice alleging that the JARPA II is violating the obligation of ICRW which prohibits the commercial whaling. Japan is strongly protesting against Australia arguing that the JARPA II has been carried out only for research whaling. This paper contains the Japan's position over the whaling in the South Pacific. The Japan's arguments are divided into two sections in this paper. First, it will check if whales are truly vulnerable following the Comprehensive Assessment of the IWC. Second, it argues the legitimacy of the JARPA II under international law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]