The Kosovo advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice

Abstract

The author claims that the ICJ issued a very narrow Advisory Opinion regarding the unilateral declaration of independence, in respect of Kosovo finding that the making of the declaration was not in itself an act contrary to international law. He also stresses that, at the same time, the ICJ did not find that Kosovo had a right to secede, that Kosovos declaration was legally effective, that the attempted secession was successful, or that Kosovo is otherwise an independent state. His opinion is that this finding merely cuts off one possible avenue for arguing that the attempted secession is unlawful, and analyses the manner in which the ICJ navigated through the political morass by recasting the question posed by the UN General Assembly.