The standardization of international law categories is hindered by a lack of uniformity, stemming directly from the fact that international law is primarily derived from the practices of States through treaties, conventions, multilateral agreements, and protocols at both global and regional levels. These practices are not governed by a uniform, singular, and dogmatic rule of law, similar to the role of a Constitution within the domestic legal systems of these States. Consequently, legal terms are coined or used freely within these practices without any overarching framework to ensure a minimum level of coherence. Thus, under such contingencies, International Law categories are delineated as long as a logical connection can be established, often inspired by the commonalities among the principal legal systems worldwide.
The task of categorizing international law constantly struggles against the “convenience of momentum” that permeates the States’ practices.
Indeed, the significant evidence of such freedom of acting of the States’ practice and its issuing effect on traditional legal dogmatic logic can be seen in the Arbitration of the Aaroo Mountain between Saudi Arabia and Yemen1 (3 December 1931), in which one of the parties to the dispute was also its arbitrator.
As a matter of fact, arising a conflict over the territorial region of Aaroo Mountain between Saudi Arabia and Yemen, the plenipotentiary of Imam Yahya, the King of Yemen, sent a telegram to His Majesty Ibn Saud, stating the following terms:
His Majesty the King, God sustain Him,
As there has been no agreement between the plenipotentiaries of both sides because of the adamant stand of both, a thing which had come to mind previously, we have sent this telegram to your Presence assuring that we leave the decision to you. We had conveyed the truth to your Presence and there remains nothing except your good sight for whatever might grace both sides and bring about harmony. May God lead you for what He likes and approves.
Peace be on you.
(signed) Ibn Mamer and his colleagues
The answer of His Majesty Ibn Saud was:
We have come to knowledge of the telegram of the Imam and we are certain that Aaroo is within our boundary. As to talks about Beni Malik and Figha and Beni Minebbik, it is inconceivable to take notice of it and we do not think that the Imam talks about it because it is above doubt. But for the sake of peace and because of our esteem for the Imam and his acceptance of us as arbitrator, we have decided in the matter as you see in our telegram and thereon to act.
We beg God to lead all to do the best.(signed) Abdul-Aziz
The United Nations classified that as an arbitration, although the arbitrator (King of Saudi Arabia) was also a party to the dispute with the King of Yemen.
- The arbitral award can be read below. ↩︎
