Islands and International Law

A feature of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea is the regime of islands. The convention was drafted to give clarity to the status of islands in the law of the sea, and their maritime entitlements, but the regime remains incomplete. China’s rejection of the 2016 South China Sea arbitral award and the response of many large coastal states to the tribunal’s interpretation of the juridical island/rock distinction shows how contested these issues are. Canada and Denmark may have settled their disagreement over Hans Island/Tartupaluk, yet islands are becoming ever more prominent in international law. Territorial disputes over islands are potential flashpoints between global powers. The maritime entitlements of islands are challenged. Island states are seeking reinterpretation of the law of the sea to address threats posed by sea-level rise.

Hybrid Event:

In Person Location: Law Building, Room 202 RSVP to lawevents@queensu.ca to register

Via Zoom: Register here: https://queenslaw.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJIsc-ihrDwtGdU-QVq_eRrA5ci5h8GUX0BZ

The Russia-Ukraine Conflict - A view from Canada’s Defence Attaché

In his talk, Colonel Foster will speak to the following themes:

1. Canada`s role in supporting Ukraine from a Defence perspective pre-24 Feb 2022;
2. Defence Diplomacy – Defence Reform, Enabling Trade and tactical level training;
3. The lead up to the invasion – sabre rattling and posturing;
4. The invasion – a failed operation into Kyiv, uncovering atrocities; and
5. Regroup and conflict in the Donbas and in the South of Ukraine.

Within each of these themes he will emphasize a few key points:

• Ukrainian Resiliency;
• Social Media Warfare; and
• Military Aid support.

Speaker

Learn More | Register Here

Where is Canada going? What should be its place on the international scene? At the crossroads of global change, Canada faces new threats, but also many opportunities. As we question how Canada should defend itself and how best to ensure its security, join experts and practitioners to understand the current environment through in-depth discussions on Canada’s international policy.

With two consecutive failures to win a United Nations Security Council seat and declining military capabilities, Canada’s place on the international stage is in question. While the changing role of the great powers and the weakening of international norms are debated, a significant decline in Canadian diplomatic activism is observable. At the same time, Canadian defense policy also sometimes suffers from a lack of clarity. Developing a proactive strategy to reposition Canada on the international scene could, however, change the situation. To become aware of the rapid evolution of the global security environment, this colloquium reviews the state of the international environment and its new threats. Its roundtables focus on Canada’s strategic assets as well as its interests and priorities. The colloquium goal is to better identify how Canada’s international strategy could become more coherent and proactive, and to predict what path it should choose.

Panel 1: Developing a Multi-Domain Approach to New Areas of Confrontation

Technological proliferation, emergence of new spaces, and multidimensional threats—what do these concepts mean and what do they imply? This panel will elucidate both questions by exploring the implications of these new threats for Canada, its people, and its position in the world. With the expansion of geostrategic space toward Asia and the emergence of cyberspace as a battlefield between nations, interstate confrontations now go beyond mere economic and military fields. The experts on this panel will provide insights and analysis to help everyone better understand this reality and what a multi-domain approach for Canada would really mean.

Panel 2: Leveraging International Cooperation & Canada’s Strategic Assets

Canada’s international policy is part of a consciously multilateral approach. This panel will investigate the role Canada plays as a “middle power” within regional and international institutions and how it can succeed in asserting its strategic interests. To understand how Canada could maintain and increase its international status, the experts on this panel will conduct a critical examination of its capacities and commitments. In short, they will aim to identify the place that cooperation can play in Canada’s foreign and defense policy.

Panel 3: Canada’s Strategic Coherence

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, gray zone conflicts, the weakening of US hegemony, and the rise of China—the world in 2022 is in turmoil. Caught between its allies, their diverging interests, and its rivals, Canada finds itself faced with the return of great powers competition. Faced with this situation, it must adapt. But how to succeed coherently? This panel will assess how Canada could design a coherent foreign policy in line with its values, but also its national interests. Defining these, its overall strategic priorities, and the budget necessary for their implementation is the challenge that this panel’s experts will tackle.