This post will examine whether unrecognised states really fit such a title, and why it is that unrecognised states remain unrecognised and thus outside of the ... ... epitomised by the United Nations’ principle of ‘non-use of force’, whereby:
All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state,...
... important that the first post of this blog addresses the theoretical foundation of its subject, namely the environment in which unrecognised states are assumed to operate and the structural restraints this may place upon them. The study of unrecognised states is, by extension, a study of small states, thus it is appropriate to operate within the theoretical boundaries of small state studies.
The study of small states is, until relatively recently, something that has been largely overlooked in the field of International Relations (IR). The discipline focuses almost exclusively on the norms and actions of ‘great power politics’,...