International Law

International law is a body of laws, regulations, and accepted practices by which different nations throughout the world interact with each other as well as with their own citizens and citizens of other countries. There are two basic categories of International Law, public International Law and private International Law, although the two tend to overlap frequently. Public International Law deals with relationships between different nations or between a nation and persons from another country. Private International Law generally deals with individual concerns, such as civil or human rights issues, not only between a government and its own citizens but also in how its citizens are treated by other nations. While the International community does attempt to hold all nations to International Law, it is not always feasible. Force may be necessary in order to ensure compliance, and the International community is generally against the use of force except in the most dire circumstances.

There are also cultural issues that play a part in acceptance of and compliance with International Law. Some nations have a theocratic, or religious, government rather than a secular one and feel more bound to the tenets of their faith than to man-made law. In some cases, what most of the world views as human rights (права человека) violations according to International Law, may be viewed by some nations as acceptable actions or punishments prescribed by religion. This can create very sensitive situations

The United Nations is probably the most well recognized of all International institutions. It has influence over the world community as a whole as well as individual nations. The UN is supposed to establish and protect peace and cooperation between nations and to ensure that people are treated humanely by their own as well as by other governments and groups. While many nations have agreed to the UN Charter, they still retain sovereignty. Few would agree to live completely under UN rule, especially in light of recent scandals and the inability of the institution to achieve its goals. The United Nations has unfortunately been plagued by scandals and perceived incompetence over the years. 

However, we can understand that international law is a set of legal relations and regulations. It provides an international agreement between States to regulate their mutual relations and not only.