Right of conquest

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Property law
Part of the common law series
Types
Acquisition
Estates in land
Conveyancing
Future use control
Nonpossessory interest
Related topics
Other common law areas
Higher category: Law and Common law

The right of conquest is a

collective defense.[1]

History and arguments

Proponents state that the right of conquest acknowledges the status quo, and that denial of the right is meaningless unless one is able and willing to use military force to deny it. Further, the right was traditionally accepted because the conquering force, being by definition stronger than any lawfully entitled governance which it may have replaced, was, therefore, more likely to secure peace and stability for the people, and so the right of conquest legitimizes the conqueror towards that end.[not verified in body]

The completion of colonial conquest of much of the world (see the

Nuremberg and Tokyo Trials, the UN Charter, and the UN role in decolonization saw the progressive dismantling of this principle.[citation needed] Simultaneously, the UN Charter's guarantee of the "territorial integrity
" of member states.

Conquest and military occupation

Until 1945, the disposition of territory acquired under the principle of conquest had to be conducted according to the existing

laws of war. This meant that there had to be military occupation followed by a peace settlement, and there was no reasonable chance of the defeated sovereign regaining the land. While a formal peace treaty "makes good any defects in title",[2] it was not required. Recognition by the losing party was not a requirement: "the right of acquisition vested by conquest did not depend on the consent of the dispossessed state".[3] However, the alternative was annexation (part or in whole) which if protested as unlawful, a peace treaty was the only means to legitimize conquest in a time of war. Essentially, conquest itself was a legal act of extinguishing the legal rights of other states without their consent. Under this new framework, it is notable that conquest and subsequent occupation outside of war were illegal.[3]

In the post-World War II era, not all wars involving territorial acquisitions ended in a peace treaty. For example, the fighting in the Korean War paused with an armistice, without any peace treaty covering it. North Korea is still technically at war with South Korea and the United States as of 2024.[4]

See also

References

  1. ISBN 9783319279459
    .
  2. ^ Korman 1996, p. 127.
  3. ^ a b Korman 1996, p. 128.
  4. ^ "The Korean War never technically ended. Here's why". History. June 24, 2020. Archived from the original on February 18, 2021.

Works cited

  • Korman, Sharon (1996). The Right of Conquest: The Acquisition of Territory by Force in International Law and Practice. Oxford University Press.
    ISBN 0-19-828007-6
    .
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