Third State Obligations And The Enforcement Of International Law

International legal theorists have always had substantial interest in what can be called the "first party" question: whether States themselves are obliged to obey international law. But discussion of non-party responsibilities -- what we analyze here as "third State" obligations -- is very limited. Our position is that international law does have something important to say about third State obligations. Non-parties, in our view, are under a legal obligation not to contribute to another States violation of international law. This obligation is satisfied if either the third State has no involvement at all in the dispute or it is involved on the side of the victim. The challenges ahead are to show where third State obligations fit in the general theoretical framework of international law and why they should be recognized and respected by the international community. Adapted from the source document.