The Peaceful Settlement of Disputes and Chapter VI of the UN Charter

Abstract

According to UN Secretary-General António Guterres, the international community is at a “stark and urgent” crossroads, confronting its greatest challenges since Second World War, as it deals with climate and planetary ecological crises, an intersecting global pandemic, and geopolitical instability/volatile international conflict, among other things. Some have called our current era one of “polycrisia,” where increasing public resources, at all levels of governance (local to international), and new, significantly enhanced approaches to international cooperation will have to be mobilized to respond to the various emergencies. One central and remedial measure the international community may wish to consider is the reform and enhancement of the international rule of law architecture and a progressive strengthening of approaches to the peaceful settlement of international disputes. Such provisions, indeed, were intended by key drafters of the 1945 UN Charter to be the “cardinal feature” of the instrument, and the linchpin of the new post-war order. Developing and implementing workable, technical upgrades to modernize the international legal system, including the International Court of Justice (ICJ), would assist in the delivery of a range of vital global public goods. Further, leaving the international rule of law system and key international legal institutions in their current state, essentially unreformed since 1945, likely has implications for the safeguarding of international human rights and democracies around the world.