[DRAFT] Framework for Interregional Treaties

[Karteria]

Framework for Interregional Treaties

Category: Declaration
Proposed by: Karteria

The Security Council,

Acknowledging the importance of treaties as a means of bilateral and multilateral cooperation and conflict resolution,

Understanding that creating treaties requires substantial coordination, transparency, predictability, and consistency among involved regions,

Recognizing a need to codify a framework for treaty negotiation, construction, and implementation to realize the aforementioned goals,

Defining, for the purpose of this resolution,

1. An “interregional treaty” (referred to henceforth as “treaty”) as an official written agreement between the governments of two or more regions regarding diplomacy, military, or other interregional issues; and
2. A “party” as a region or the representative(s) thereof involved in a treaty;

Hereby adopts the following guidelines for treaties:

Article 1: Negotiation

1. Parties should communicate in good faith in accordance with regional law and avoid engaging in fraud, intimidation, or corruption.
2. Parties should respect the customs of other parties to the extent possible and relevant.
3. Only appropriate representatives of a regional government as accredited by that government should negotiate on behalf of their region.
4. Parties should conduct negotiations for a treaty in a forum where every party can have their concerns heard and addressed.

Article 2: Construction and Documentation

1. A treaty should address all relevant aspects of its purpose as well as the standards set forth in this resolution.
2. A treaty should only contain plain language.
3. A treaty, once finalized, should be published in a medium that is easily accessible by all parties.

Article 3: Implementation

1. A treaty should be considered in effect once it has attained the mutual consent of all parties and is published in accordance with Article 2, Section III of this resolution.
2. A treaty, once in effect, should be binding on all parties for its duration. Parties should endeavor to fulfill their obligations in good faith.
3. Amendments to a treaty should require consent from all parties before enactment.
4. Parties are encouraged to regularly reconvene for the continued enforcement of a treaty.
5. A treaty should maintain a process, if applicable, for the inclusion of additional parties.
6. A treaty should not retroactively apply to parties.

Article 4: Dispute Resolution

1. A treaty should contain a process for dispute resolution between parties related to provisions thereof.
2. Such disputes should be resolved peacefully and with urgency, avoiding situations that spawn unnecessary conflict.

Article 5: Termination

1. A treaty should contain provisions for circumstances in which its suspension or termination for all parties is acceptable.
2. A party should maintain the right to withdraw from a treaty in accordance with its provisions or when 1) that party was induced to consent to the treaty due to fraud or intimidation, 2) an error is present in the treaty that does not allow for its obligations to be fulfilled in good faith, or 3) another party failed to fulfill their obligations in good faith.

Notes: My first attempt at a Security Council proposal didn't go as well as I'd hoped, though I feel a bit more confident within the new category.

I wrote this one because, well, it seemed like fun. In terms of the benefits, I believe that setting guidelines for diplomatic interactions between regions is well within the Security Council's scene and that setting concrete standards for such (in this proposal, treaties) would potentially help alleviate asymmetric information. At the very least, the SC would take an official stance on how treaties should be made.

Feedback would be appreciated, as always. My concerns are, first and foremost, whether it’s legal and whether it serves a beneficial purpose. I'll try to be as responsive as possible.

The Security Council,

Defining, for the purpose of this resolution,

1. An “interregional treaty” (referred to henceforth as “treaty”) as an official agreement between the governments of two or more regions regarding diplomatic, militaristic, or other interregional issues;
2. A “party” as a region or the representative(s) thereof involved in a treaty;
3. A “third party” as an entity or the representative(s) thereof that are not involved in a treaty;

Acknowledging the importance of treaties as a means for bilateral and multilateral cooperation and conflict resolution,

Understanding that creating treaties requires substantial coordination, transparency, predictability, and consistency among involved regions,

Recognizing a need to codify a framework for treaty negotiation, construction, and implementation to realize the aforementioned goals,

Hereby adopts the following guidelines for treaties:

Article 1: Negotiation

1. Parties should communicate in good faith in accordance with regional law and avoid engaging in fraud, intimidation, or corruption.
2. Parties should respect the customs of other parties to the extent possible and relevant.
3. Only appropriate representatives of a regional government as identified by that government, such as a head of state or an appointed diplomat, should negotiate on behalf of their region.
4. Parties should conduct negotiations for a treaty in a forum where every party can have their concerns heard and addressed.
5. If beneficial and collectively agreeable, parties should utilize a third party as a mediator for the formation or continued negotiation of a treaty.

Article 2: Construction and Documentation

1. A treaty should address all relevant aspects of its purpose as well as the standards set forth in this resolution.
2. A treaty should contain written language that has attained the consent of all parties and is understandable to the average reader.
3. A treaty, once finalized, should be published in a medium that is easily viewable by all parties.

Article 3: Implementation

1. A treaty, once in effect, should be binding on all parties for its duration. Parties should endeavor to fulfill their obligations in good faith.
2. Amendments to a treaty should require consent from all parties before enactment.
3. Parties are encouraged to regularly reconvene for the continued enforcement of a treaty.
4. A treaty should maintain a process, if applicable, for the inclusion of additional parties.
5. A treaty should not retroactively apply to parties.

Article 4: Dispute Resolution

1. A treaty should contain a process for dispute resolution between parties related to provisions thereof.
2. Such disputes should be resolved peacefully and with urgency, avoiding situations that spawn unnecessary conflict.

Article 5: Termination

1. A treaty should contain provisions for circumstances in which its suspension or termination for all parties is acceptable.
2. A party should maintain the right to withdraw from a treaty in accordance with its provisions or when all other parties fail to fulfill their obligations in good faith.

The Security Council,

Defining, for the purpose of this resolution,

1. An “interregional treaty” (referred to henceforth as “treaty”) as an official agreement between the governments of two or more regions regarding diplomatic, militaristic, or other interregional issues;
2. A “party” as a region or the representative(s) thereof involved in a treaty;
3. A “third party” as an entity or the representative(s) thereof that are not involved in a treaty;

Acknowledging the importance of treaties as a means for bilateral and multilateral cooperation and conflict resolution,

Understanding that creating treaties requires substantial coordination, transparency, predictability, and consistency among involved regions,

Recognizing a need to codify a framework for treaty negotiation, construction, and implementation to realize the aforementioned goals,

Hereby adopts the following guidelines for treaties:

Article 1: Negotiation

1. Parties should communicate in good faith in accordance with regional law and avoid engaging in fraud, intimidation, or corruption.
2. Parties should respect the customs of other parties to the extent possible and relevant.
3. Only appropriate representatives of a regional government as identified by that government should negotiate on behalf of their region.
4. Parties should conduct negotiations for a treaty in a forum where every party can have their concerns heard and addressed.
5. If beneficial and collectively agreeable, parties should utilize a third party as a mediator for the formation or continued negotiation of a treaty.

Article 2: Construction and Documentation

1. A treaty should address all relevant aspects of its purpose as well as the standards set forth in this resolution.
2. A treaty should contain written language that has attained the consent of all parties and is understandable to the average reader.
3. A treaty, once finalized, should be published in a medium that is easily viewable by all parties.

Article 3: Implementation

1. A treaty, once in effect, should be binding on all parties for its duration. Parties should endeavor to fulfill their obligations in good faith.
2. Amendments to a treaty should require consent from all parties before enactment.
3. Parties are encouraged to regularly reconvene for the continued enforcement of a treaty.
4. A treaty should maintain a process, if applicable, for the inclusion of additional parties.
5. A treaty should not retroactively apply to parties.

Article 4: Dispute Resolution

1. A treaty should contain a process for dispute resolution between parties related to provisions thereof.
2. Such disputes should be resolved peacefully and with urgency, avoiding situations that spawn unnecessary conflict.
3. If all parties consent, they should utilize a third party for such resolution where beneficial.

Article 5: Termination

1. A treaty should contain provisions for circumstances in which its suspension or termination for all parties is acceptable.
2. A party should maintain the right to withdraw from a treaty in accordance with its provisions or when all other parties fail to fulfill their obligations in good faith.

The Security Council,

Defining, for the purpose of this resolution,

1. An “interregional treaty” (referred to henceforth as “treaty”) as an official written agreement between the governments of two or more regions regarding diplomacy, military, or other interregional issues;
2. A “party” as a region or the representative(s) thereof involved in a treaty;
3. A “third party” as an entity or the representative(s) thereof that are not involved in a treaty;

Acknowledging the importance of treaties as a means of bilateral and multilateral cooperation and conflict resolution,

Understanding that creating treaties requires substantial coordination, transparency, predictability, and consistency among involved regions,

Recognizing a need to codify a framework for treaty negotiation, construction, and implementation to realize the aforementioned goals,

Hereby adopts the following guidelines for treaties:

Article 1: Negotiation

1. Parties should communicate in good faith in accordance with regional law and avoid engaging in fraud, intimidation, or corruption.
2. Parties should respect the customs of other parties to the extent possible and relevant.
3. Only appropriate representatives of a regional government as identified by that government should negotiate on behalf of their region.
4. Parties should conduct negotiations for a treaty in a forum where every party can have their concerns heard and addressed.
5. If beneficial and collectively agreeable, parties should utilize a third party as a mediator for the formation or continued negotiation of a treaty.

Article 2: Construction and Documentation

1. A treaty should address all relevant aspects of its purpose as well as the standards set forth in this resolution.
2. A treaty should contain plain language that has attained the consent of all parties.
3. A treaty, once finalized, should be published in a medium that is easily viewable by all parties.

Article 3: Implementation

1. A treaty, once in effect, should be binding on all parties for its duration. Parties should endeavor to fulfill their obligations in good faith.
2. Amendments to a treaty should require consent from all parties before enactment.
3. Parties are encouraged to regularly reconvene for the continued enforcement of a treaty.
4. A treaty should maintain a process, if applicable, for the inclusion of additional parties.
5. A treaty should not retroactively apply to parties.

Article 4: Dispute Resolution

1. A treaty should contain a process for dispute resolution between parties related to provisions thereof.
2. Such disputes should be resolved peacefully and with urgency, avoiding situations that spawn unnecessary conflict.
3. If all parties consent, they should utilize a third party for such resolution where beneficial.

Article 5: Termination

1. A treaty should contain provisions for circumstances in which its suspension or termination for all parties is acceptable.
2. A party should maintain the right to withdraw from a treaty in accordance with its provisions or when all other parties fail to fulfill their obligations in good faith.

[/list]

[Quebecshire]

At first glance, this seems sensible enough. I, and presume many others, have some concerns about overreaching, but from what I've first read it just seems to formalize what is already common etiquette.

Minor nitpick.

Only appropriate representatives of a regional government as identified by that government, such as a head of state or an appointed diplomat, should negotiate on behalf of their region.

The above should be edited to incorporate heads of government. For example, the South Pacific has a separate head of state and head of government, and most, if not all treaty negotiations would be more directly handled by the head of government, at least compared to the head of state. Perhaps something like this,

Only appropriate representatives of a regional government as identified by that government, such as a head of state, head of government, or an appointed diplomat, should negotiate on behalf of their region.

Not sure if that sounds too nice, though.

[Karteria]

At first glance, this seems sensible enough. I, and presume many others, have some concerns about overreaching, but from what I've first read it just seems to formalize what is already common etiquette.

Minor nitpick.

Only appropriate representatives of a regional government as identified by that government, such as a head of state or an appointed diplomat, should negotiate on behalf of their region.

The above should be edited to incorporate heads of government. For example, the South Pacific has a separate head of state and head of government, and most, if not all treaty negotiations would be more directly handled by the head of government, at least compared to the head of state. Perhaps something like this,

Only appropriate representatives of a regional government as identified by that government, such as a head of state, head of government, or an appointed diplomat, should negotiate on behalf of their region.

Not sure if that sounds too nice, though.

Overreaching is a main concern of mine, as well. I'm glad that the draft as it stands does not address too minor of details or is some kind of extensive treatise on treaty writing, which is what I want to avoid.

The officials listed are not meant to be exhaustive, but I have no problem making that change. Thanks for the suggestion!

EDIT: After receiving some feedback from elsewhere, I decided to remove the list of example officials altogether in Art. 1, Sec. III in order to be as representative of diverse governments as possible.

[Sylh Alanor]

I quite like the idea of this. I don't have much in the way of criticism, but I thought I'd mention that, as of right now, this would have my support ^-^ Good luck!

[Karteria]

I quite like the idea of this. I don't have much in the way of criticism, but I thought I'd mention that, as of right now, this would have my support ^-^ Good luck!

I appreciate it. If you think of any way I can make it better, don't hesitate to let me know.

[Sedgistan]

Legality-wise, it's fine with regards to the Declarations category.

[Karteria]

After some private feedback, I've made some minor adjustments to the treaty definition and a few other clauses. In Art. 2(II), I use "plain language" instead of "language... that is understandable to the average reader." Put "written" in the definition of treaty and made a minor change in clause 2 of the preamble.

Legality-wise, it's fine with regards to the Declarations category.

Glad to hear it! Thanks for letting me know.

[Karteria]

Bump. After another read, I've conducted a fairly significant rework:

• Nixed all the stuff about third parties because I felt the concept was outside the scope of my proposal
• Now using "accredited" instead of "identified" [Art. I, Sec. III]
• Now using "accessible" instead of "viewable" [Art. II, Sec. III]
• Expanded on the concept of mutual consent and when a treaty should go into effect [Art. III, Sec. I]
• Expanded on when a party should be able to withdraw from a treaty, such as with a major error or fraudulent/intimidatory circumstances [Art. 5, Sec. II]

As always, feedback is appreciated.