The Sovereignty and Statehood.

The existence or disappearance of a state is a question of fact. While according to the declarative theory of statehood a sovereign state can exist without being recognized by other sovereign states, unrecognized states will often find it hard to exercise full treaty-making powers and engage in diplomatic relations with other sovereign states.

A State comes into objective factual existence upon meeting the statehood criteria, and its emergence is there upon acknowledged by international law. State must have three elements: a territory, a population, and public authority.

A state must have a defined territory. This means that State needs to possess “‘something natural” in order to be a State. What does it mean that a State needs to have a defined territory? A territory itself is an objective natural fact, while its delimitation, which defines a territory, can only be a matter of law. According to Hans Kelsen, “[t]traditional theory distinguishes between ‘natural’ and ‘artificial’,i.e. , legal, boundaries; but the boundaries of a State always have a legal character, whether or not they coincide with such natural frontiers as, for instance, a river or a mountain range.

a sovereign state is a nonphysical juridical entity that is represented by one centralized government that has sovereignty over a geographic area. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defined territory, one government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other sovereign states. State sovereignty is the concept that states are in complete and exclusive control of all the people and property within their territory. State sovereignty also includes the idea that all states are equal as states. 

State sovereignty is the concept that states are in complete and exclusive control of all the people and property within their territory. State sovereignty also includes the idea that all states are equal as states. International treaties, therefore, bind states to give their own citizens rights that are agreed on at a global level. In some cases, other countries can even monitor and enforce human rights treaties against a state for the treatment of the offending state’s own citizens.

Under the concept of state sovereignty, no state has the authority to tell another state how to control its internal affairs. Sovereignty both grants and limits power: it gives states complete control over their own territory while restricting the influence that states have on one another. In this example, sovereignty gives the power to Brazil to ultimately decide what to do with its rainforest resources and limits the power of Canada to impact this decision.

Fundamental to the contemporary international legal system is the concept of the state. States are both the subject and primary object of international law States possess ultimate rights of participation in both the creation of international law and in the construction and operation of the international legal system. The hallmark of the modern state is described by the terminology of sovereignty which, among other things, means the right to exercise supreme, independent authority or jurisdiction over a piece of territory. There are limitations on this territorial sovereignty however, for the most part, a sovereign state has considerable discretionary latitude regarding the conduct of affairs within its territory.

Under the concept of state sovereignty, no state has the authority to tell another state how to control its internal affairs. Sovereignty both grants and limits power: it gives states complete control over their own territory while restricting the influence that states have on one another.

The exercise of sovereignty and sovereign rights is contingent on statehood. While there is on going debate regarding the scope of the criteria for statehood, the generally accepted formulation of those criteria is contained In Article 1 of the Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States which provides:

The State as a person of international law should possess the following qualifications:

(a)A permanent population;

(b)A defined territory;

(c)Government; and

(d) Capacity to enter into relations with other states.