International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion On Kosovo's Declaration of Indep
On July 22, 2010, the International Court of Justice delivered an advisory opinion concerning the unilateral declaration of independence by Kosovo. The court had to decide if the declaration did not violate general international law. The court concluded that the unilateral declaration of independence did not violate international law, because it was not issued by any official body bound by Serbian or UN administration rules, and international law does not contain a prohibition against declarations of independence.
The unique situation of Kosovo was not discussed nor presented as a reason for the exclusion of Serbian laws (internal law) to analyse the matter. The court stated that only general international law applies to the situation of a unilateral declaration of independence. The court also stated that a referendum was not required.
However, the ICJ's opinion did not directly relate to Reference re Secession of Quebec, because the former only addresses the ability of a private body to issue a declaration; whereas the Supreme Court's opinion on Reference re Secession concerns the ability to actually effect secession, which is a legal issue.
Read more about this topic: Reference Re Secession Of Quebec, International Law
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