and regional programmes and formulates general obligations, obligations of states-parties affected by drought, and responsibilities of developed states to combat desertification and mitigate the effects of drought. Preventing desertification must be a priority in the national policy of drought-affected states-parties. They are also obligated to educate citizens and citizen groups in this matter.
The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea255 contains innovative principles and regulations concerning the protection of the environment and the preservation of the marine environment through the rational use and protection of living and non-living marine resources. The Convention formulates obligations with regard to the protection and preservation of the marine environment in those areas that are subject to national jurisdiction as a result of the establishment of a 200-mile exclusive economic zone and also on the continental shelf. This dual approach is reflected in the provision that the states have a sovereign right to exploit their natural resources in accordance with their environmental policy and in accordance with their duty to protect and preserve the marine environment.256 Part XII of the Convention formulates a number of specific obligations in the field of environmental protection. In particular, they concern the prevention, reduction and control of environmental pollution, including pollution originating from areas under national jurisdiction.257 In addition, it establishes states’ international legal responsibility for fulfilling international obligations regarding the protection and preservation of the marine environment.258 The convention also mentions the specific responsibilities of coastal states with regard to the protection and use of living resources in their exclusive economic zone.259
It is also worth pointing out the International Tropical Timber Agreement (2006)260 as an example of an attempt to include international environmental law in the multilateral treaty on specific types of stocks. In the preamble to the contract, the parties recognize the importance and necessity of adequate and effective protection of tropical forests with a view to ensuring their optimal use, while maintaining ecological balance in the regions.261 Furthermore, they indicate that, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of international law, states have the sovereign right to exploit their resources in accordance with their own environmental policy and are responsible for ensuring that the activities under their jurisdiction do not adversely affect the natural environment of third countries nor areas outside national jurisdiction.262
International and arbitration case law has so far mainly focused on the obligation of states to prevent significant damage to the environment of third countries. Representative of this subject is the arbitration award in the case of Trail Smelter (1941)263 and the ICJ ruling on nuclear tests in the South Pacific (Australia/New Zealand v. France, 1974264 and New Zealand v. France, 1995265).
3.4.1 The duty to cooperate internationally for development
Resolution 523 (VI)266 recognizes that developed countries must use natural resources for the further development of the global economy. This wording can be interpreted as an expression of the duty of cooperation for international development. In the regulations on permanent sovereignty contained in the Charter of Economic Rights and Duties of States,267 as well as in the Resolution on the Establishment of a New International Economic Order,268 such a requirement does not exist, but there are many references to general goals such as sustainable growth of the global economy, balanced international trade, and economic cooperation between countries.269
As far as the multilateral treaties are concerned, only general references to the duty to cooperate can be found, although none of them is directly related to permanent sovereignty over natural resources. The most important of them is of course the United Nations Charter,270 especially Chapter IX on international economic and social cooperation.271
The preamble of the General Agreement on Customs and Trade (GATT)272 states that international relations in the field of trade and economic ventures should aim to raise the standard of living, make full use of the world’s resources, and develop production and exchange of goods. The WTO (1994) Statute273 incorporates a modified formula for this objective, calling for the optimal use of global resources in line with the objectives of sustainable development, with the aim of protecting and conserving the environment, as well as increasing funds for this purpose in a manner consistent with the needs appearing at the various levels of economic development.
The Energy Charter Treaty aims to promote long-term cooperation in the field of energy by supporting the exploration and development of energy resources on a commercial and non-discriminatory basis. Facilitating access to these resources and securing the supply of oil and gas are the main motives driving this cooperation.274
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea indicates as its general objective the establishment of legal orders for the seas and oceans, which will promote the fair and effective use of resources, both inside and outside the boundaries of national economic jurisdiction.275
The Seoul Declaration establishes the goal that states-parties and the international organizations involved should be guided by in their actions, but it does not impose on them unambiguous obligations. The duty to cooperate in international economic relations implies a gradual development of this goal in the context of the growing economic interdependence between states. In particular, it should lead to enhanced cooperation in the field of international trade, international monetary and financial relations, transnational investments, technology transfer, regulation of transnational corporation activities and transnational restrictive trade practices, the supply of food, energy and raw materials, international environmental protection, development rights, and coordination of various activities with a view to the coherent implementation of new international economic governance.276 Cooperation for global development has been formulated as an incentive rather than an obligation, which makes it difficult to determine whether and, if so, which specific international obligations in the use of natural resources result from such a duty to cooperate.277
It is worth noting that the resolutions regarding permanent sovereignty do not explicitly call on states to exercise permanent sovereignty or to use
