GPIL – German Practice in International Law

Published 30 May 2023 Author: Stefan Talmon

On 23 May 2021, Ryanair flight FR4978 from Athens to Vilnius was diverted by Belarusian air traffic control under the pretext of a dubious bomb threat. Upon landing at Minsk airport, one of the passengers on board, Belarusian blogger and political activist Roman Protasevich was arrested on charges of inciting unrest against the government of President Alexander Lukashenko. His partner, Sofia Sapega, was also arrested. Western States condemned the landing on false grounds as a serious attack on the rules governing civil aviation. (more…)

Published: 27 April 2023 Author: Stefan Talmon

Throughout the year, Germany makes numerous statements on international law. Not all these statements form part of a case study presented on GPIL. However, these statements may nevertheless be of interest to international lawyers. We therefore compile these statements on a monthly basis. (more…)

Published: 25 April 2023 Author: Stefan Talmon

On 7 December 2020, the Council of the European Union (EU) adopted a new Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime that allowed the EU to impose restrictive measures on individuals and entities responsible for serious human rights violations and abuses worldwide. The new regime provided for travel bans, asset freezes and a prohibition to make funds or economic resources available, either directly or indirectly, to listed human rights offenders. The EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime was first applied on 2 March 2021 against four Russian individuals involved in serious human rights violations in Russia. (more…)

Published: 20 April 2023 Author: Stefan Talmon

From 1884 to 1915, Germany was the colonial power in the territory of what is today Namibia. In 1904, the Herero and Nama tribes revolted against German colonial rule. The revolt was brutally crushed by imperial German troops. It is estimated that, between 1904 and 1908, some 65,000 Herero (80 per cent of the tribe’s population) and some 10,000 Nama (50 per cent of the tribe’s population) were killed, starved to death or died in camps. The events have been referred to as ‘the first genocide of the 20th century’. While Germany acknowledged its ‘moral and historical responsibility to Namibia’, it tried for a long time to avoid referring to the events as ‘genocide’. (more…)

Published: 18 April 2023 Author: Stefan Talmon

On 17 January 2021, prominent Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny was arrested by security forces at Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow upon returning from Germany, where he spent five months  being treated for poisoning with a chemical nerve agent that he blamed on Russian President Vladimir Putin. Several days later, a court ruled that while in Germany Alexei Navalny had violated probation terms of a suspended sentence from 2014 and ordered him to serve two years and eight months in prison. (more…)

Published: 10 April 2023 Author: Stefan Talmon

Throughout the year, Germany makes numerous statements on international law. Not all these statements form part of a case study presented on GPIL. However, these statements may nevertheless be of interest to international lawyers. We therefore compile these statements on a monthly basis. (more…)

Published: 6 April 2023 Author: Stefan Talmon

Throughout the year, Germany makes numerous statements on international law. Not all these statements form part of a case study presented on GPIL. However, these statements may nevertheless be of interest to international lawyers. We therefore compile these statements on a monthly basis. (more…)

Published: 4 April 2023 Author: Stefan Talmon

In September 2021, Vanuatu announced his intention to build a coalition of States to seek an advisory opinion on climate change from the International Court of Justice (ICJ). On 24 October 2022, Vanuatu announced that it was working closely with a core group of eleven other States, including Germany – the ICJAO4Climate Core Group – focussed on seeking an advisory opinion of the ICJ clarifying the rights and obligations of States under international law as it pertains to the adverse effects of climate change. Three days, later Vanuatu’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations and Special Envoy for Climate Change, Ambassador Odo Tevi, made a statement to the General Assembly, which read in part: (more…)

Published: 31 March 2023 Author: Stefan Talmon

Throughout the year, Germany makes numerous statements on international law. Not all these statements form part of a case study presented on GPIL. However, these statements may nevertheless be of interest to international lawyers. We therefore compile these statements on a monthly basis. (more…)

Published 30 March 2023 Author: Stefan Talmon

Throughout the year, Germany makes numerous statements on international law. Not all these statements form part of a case study presented on GPIL. However, these statements may nevertheless be of interest to international lawyers. We therefore compile these statements on a monthly basis. (more…)