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This last 'decade of sanctions' began with a most comprehensive set of measures against Iraq, most of which remain in force, despite the fact that they have not solved the 'Iraq problem'. Some lessons may be learned, however, from the Iraqi experience. It has helped the UN Security Council develop the new 'smart sanctions', particularly those targeting regimes with basic human rights implications. Nevertheless, the Council has normally been reluctant to include human rights violations as the principal ratio decidendi of sanctions and, when sanctions are decided, the Council has adopted an ad hoc approach, thus avoiding the creation of precedents. Moreover, although important efforts to increase transparency and effective- ness have been made, the sanction regimes continue to be managed independently, with a case-by-case approach and allowing too much secrecy. Finally, the Council's new practice regarding 'authorizations' for the use of force against targeted states does not provide for a clear system of controls, and the vagueness of the mandate incorporates another caveat in the Council's resolutions. This paper explores whether these recent trends show a tendency towards 'deregulation' in the Security Council's action in defence of basic human rights, seeking as such to create a scenario governed by authoritative case-by-case decisions and avoiding a clear set of legal rules of public international law.

Spain could be perfectly considered a leading power in underwater cultural heritage (UCH). Until very recently, Spain had not asserted its rights over Spanish UCH located in foreign or international waters. Paradoxically, the legal canvas offered by Spanish domestic legislation protecting UCH, both central and regional legislation, offers a high level of protection. Notwithstanding the inconclusive position adopted by Spain during the UNESCO negotiations, it is expected that the future attitude of the Spanish authorities regarding UCH, both political and legal, will change as a result of the ratification of the Convention by Spain on 6 June 2005. Keywords: domestic legislation; Spain; underwater cultural heritage (UCH); UNESCO Convention

Environmental damages caused by Iraqi occupation of Kuwait and its aftermath are to be assessed through the compensation system created by the UN Security Council. The UN Compensation Commission (‘UNCC’) has scheduled its first decision on environmental claims for the summer of 2001. These claims, however, deserve a particular treatment by the UNCC: problems related to the law applicable, the principle of due process, the principle of causal link, the assessment of damage, the identification of injured subjects, and the type of compensation are particularly addressed in the following pages. Keeping in mind the ‘precedent-setting procedure’ used by the UNCC, this article tries to explore previous applicable precedents, ordering them into a structured ‘legal’ framework and exposing existing gaps, if any.