P F Tinmore, et al,
I assume you are talking about the 1948 Declaration of Independence of the Jewish State --- in which on or about midnight on 14 May 1948, the Provisional Government of Israel proclaimed a new State of Israel. On 15 May 1948, the first day of Israeli Independence
(exactly one year after UNSCOP was established) Arab armies invaded Israel and the first Arab-Israeli war began.
Our friend "P_F Tinmore" is correct by implying that under International Law the act of Cession is usually marked by Treaty (customarily).
What other means are there besides treaty. Acquisition of territory cannot be just say so or some back door approach.
I believe that conquest would be more applicable. Of course conquest was illegal when Israel drove out the Palestinians and set up shop.
(COMMENT)
Like nearly every tenant of the UN Charter, most most actions are suppose to be undertaken in a way which will not threaten international peace and security; it seldom works out that way. Just as each State has the duty not to use of force in solving international disputes, including territorial disputes; this does not always happen.
Your assumption is partially correct. The assuming territorial sovereignty over the land --- a state just cannot say: "it's mine."--- A nation or people must be able to defend their claim. When Israel assumed control of their territory, it did not violate the existing nation-states' borders. And in a the post–World War II environment, one of the considerations in the new political era was the concept to inviolability of existing states borders; regardless of how and when they were determined. In the case of the Jewish State of Israel, the territory it assumed in 1948 were a remnant of the territorial concessions made by the Ottoman Empire and Turkish government following the first World War. The territory was ceded to the Allied Powers
(NOT the indigenous Arab population).
With the rise of the concept of self-determination, the Arab Palestinians (and indeed much of the international community) are confused. The international community has failed to define exactly who is entitled to claim of self-determination — Like you say, it is not just the "say so or some back door approach" a group, a people, or a nation— confers upon itself or the territory in question.
“It is only through the realization of this very basic right of people to determine, with no compulsion or coercion, their own future, political status and independence that we can begin to address others such as dignity, justice, progress and equity,”
said the representative of Maldives.
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Those looking for "the" definition of self-determination will be disappointed, for many of the texts are deliberately ambiguous or even contradictory. Nonetheless, we must ultimately try to articulate the international norm of self-determination in terms that are sufficiently precise so that it continues to be relevant in the post-colonial era.
The Princeton Encyclopedia of Self-Determination
I am struck by the fact that in
"Wikipedia" the contributor phased it like this under
Cession: "Since the emergence of
self-determination as a recognised principle of international law, a state may need to consult the inhabitants of a territory (if any) before they may cede sovereignty over it."
Conquest implies a nation initiated the subjugation and assumption of control of a territory and its people by use of military force. Israel does not want to bring either the West Bank or Gaza Strip under subjugation, control or governance under the extension of sovereignty; either peacefully or by military measures. It is a security measure for the survival if their nation.
But, if you don't believe that acquisition by conquest is not a valid political play, just ask the People of the Crimea; or when Indonesia invaded and annexed the former Portuguese colony of East Timor (1975). The idea that the international law is interpreted to mean that member nations are obligated not to recognize territorial acquisitions achieved by aggressive war has never been tested in court; nor is it likely to be tested.
Most Respectfully,
R