A state-like formation is a rather complex and exceptional phenomenon of international legal character, still poorly studied by the domestic science of international law. The educational literature contains very little information about this unique phenomenon, and special literature only touches on certain points of individual state-like entities. There are no separate monographic or dissertation works devoted to the concept of international legal personality and other issues of the status of state-like entities in Russia.

In international relations, special political-territorial entities (sometimes called state-like entities) that have internal self-government and, in various volumes, international legal personality may participate.

Most often, such entities are temporary and arise as a result of the unresolved territorial claims of different countries to each other.

Common to political and territorial entities of this kind is that in almost all cases they were created on the basis of international agreements, as a rule, peace treaties. Such agreements endowed them with a certain international legal personality, provided for an independent constitutional structure, a system of bodies government controlled, the right to issue regulations, to have limited armed forces.

These, in particular, are the free cities and the Vatican.

A free city is a city-state that has internal self-government and some international legal personality. One of the first such cities was Veliky Novgorod. The Hanseatic cities were also included in the list of free cities (the Hanseatic League included Lubeck, Hamburg, Bremen, Rostock, Danzig, Riga, Derpt, Revel, Amsterdam, Kennigsberg, Kiel, Stralsund and others - a total of 50 cities).

In the XIX and XX centuries. the status of free cities was determined by international legal acts or resolutions of the League of Nations and the UN General Assembly and other organizations. For example, the status of Krakow was established in Art. 4 Russian-Austrian treaty, in Art. 2 Russian-Prussian treaty, in the additional Austro-Russian-Prussian treaty of May 3, 1815; in Art. 6-10 of the Final Act of the Vienna Congress of June 9, 1815; in the Constitution of the free city of 1815/1833 Subsequently, by an agreement of November 6, 1846, concluded by Austria, Prussia and Russia, the status of Krakow was changed and it became part of Austria.

The status of the free city of Danzig (currently Gdansk) was determined in Art. 100-108 Versailles Peace Treaty of June 28, 1919, in the Polish-Danzig Convention of November 9, 1920 and in a number of other agreements (for example, in the agreement of October 24, 1921 and in the decisions of the High Commissioner of the League of Nations, subsequently recognized Polish government).

The scope of the international legal personality of free cities was determined by international agreements and constitutions of such cities. The latter were not states or trust territories, but occupied, as it were, an intermediate position. Free cities did not have complete self-government. However, they obeyed only international law. For citizens of free cities created a special citizenship. Many cities had the right to conclude international treaties and join intergovernmental organizations. Either a group of states or international organizations (League of Nations, UN, etc.) acted as guarantors of the status of free cities. An integral feature of a free city is its demilitarization and neutralization.

West Berlin had a special international legal status. After the Second World War, as a result of the split of Germany, two sovereign states formed: the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic, as well as a special political and territorial unit - West Berlin.

The government of the USSR, in agreement with the government of the German Democratic Republic in 1958, proposed that West Berlin, located on the territory of the German Democratic Republic, be given the status of a demilitarized free city capable of exercising international functions under the guarantee of the four powers: Britain, USSR, USA and France.

The international legal status of West Berlin was determined by the Quadripartite Agreement signed by the governments of Great Britain, the USSR, the USA and France on September 3, 1971. In accordance with this document, West Berlin had a unique international legal status. The state-political structure of West Berlin was determined by the Constitution, which entered into force on October 1, 1950. The international legal personality of West Berlin was limited. The city had its own diplomatic and consular corps accredited by the relevant authorities of the governments of the USA, Great Britain and France. The USSR, with the consent of the governments of these countries, established the Consulate General. West Berlin had the right to participate in international negotiations, conclude agreements regarding communications, telegraphs, regulate trips of permanent residents to various regions of the GDR, etc. Germany represented the western sectors of Berlin in international organizations and conferences.

The special status of West Berlin was revoked in 1990. In accordance with the Treaty on the final settlement of Germany in respect of September 12, 1990, the united Germany includes the territories of the German Democratic Republic, Germany and the whole of Berlin.

Vatican. In 1929, on the basis of the Lateran Treaty, signed by the papal representative of Gaspari and the head of the Italian government Mussolini, the “state” of the Vatican was artificially created (the agreement was revised in 1984). The creation of the Vatican was dictated by the desire of Italian fascism in its internal and foreign policy enlist the active support of the Catholic Church. The Lateran Treaty preamble defines the international legal status of the Vatican City state as follows: to ensure absolute and clear independence for the Holy See, which guarantees undeniable sovereignty in the international arena, the need for the creation of a "state" of the Vatican was recognized, recognizing its full ownership in relation to the Holy See , exclusive and absolute power and sovereign jurisdiction.

The main goal of the Vatican is to create conditions of independent government for the head of the Catholic Church. At the same time, the Vatican is an independent international personality. He maintains external relations with many states, establishes his permanent missions (embassies) in these states, headed by papal nuncions or internations (Article 14 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961). Vatican delegations participate in the work international organizations and conferences. He is a member of several intergovernmental organizations (IAEA, ITU, UPU, etc.), has permanent observers at the UN, OJSC, UNESCO and other organizations.

At the same time, the Vatican is not a state in the social sense as a mechanism for managing a particular society, generated by it and representing it. Rather, it can be seen as the administrative center of the Catholic Church.

According to the Vatican's Basic Law (Constitution), the right to represent the state belongs to the head of the Catholic Church - the pope. In this case, it is necessary to distinguish the agreements concluded by the pope as the head of the church for church affairs (concordatas) from secular agreements that he concludes on behalf of the Vatican city.

State-like entities have a certain amount of international legal personality. They are endowed with an appropriate scope of rights and obligations and thereby become subjects of international law. Such entities have territory, sovereignty, have their own citizenship, legislative assembly, government, international treaties.

Those, in particular, were free cities, and nowadays - the Vatican.

Free cities. A free city is a city-state that has internal self-government and some international legal personality. One of the first such cities was Veliky Novgorod. Among the free cities were Hanseatic cities (the Hanseatic League included Lubeck, Hamburg, Bremen, Rostock, Danzig, Riga, Derpt, Revel, Amsterdam, Koenigsberg, Kiel, Stralsund and others - only 50 cities). In the XIX and XX centuries. the status of free cities was determined by international legal acts or resolutions of the League of Nations and the UN General Assembly and other organizations. For example, the status of Krakow was established in Art. 4 of the Russian-Austrian Treaty, in Art. 2 Russian-Prussian treaty, in the additional Austro-Russian-Prussian treaty of May 3, 1815; in Art. 6-10 of the Final Act of the Vienna Congress of June 9, 1815; in the Constitution of the free city of 1815/1833 Subsequently, by an agreement of November 6, 1846, concluded by Austria, Prussia and Russia, the status of Krakow was changed and it became part of Austria.

The status of the free city of Danzig (currently Gdansk) was determined in Art. 100-108 of the Versailles Peace Treaty of June 28, 1919, in the Polish-Danzig Convention of November 9, 1920 and in a number of other agreements (for example, in the agreement of October 24, 1921 and in the decisions of the High Commissioner of the League of Nations, subsequently recognized Polish government).

The status of Trieste was provided for in Sec. III part 2 of the Peace Treaty with Italy in 1947 and in appendices VI-X to it. In October 1954, Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Yugoslavia initialed the text of the Memorandum of Understanding, on the basis of which Italy took possession of zone A (Trieste with its environs), with the exception of a small part of the territory assigned to zone B, which remained in Yugoslavia.

The status of Jerusalem was determined by General Assembly resolution No. 181/11 of November 23, 1947 (this resolution did not enter into force) 2.

The scope of the international legal personality of free cities was determined by international agreements and constitutions of such cities. The latter were not states or trust territories, but occupied, as it were, an intermediate position. Free cities did not have complete self-government. However, they obeyed only international law. For citizens of free cities created a special citizenship. Many cities had the right to conclude international treaties and join intergovernmental organizations. Either a group of states or international organizations (League of Nations, UN, etc.) acted as guarantors of the status of free cities. An integral feature of a free city is its demilitarization and neutralization.

West Berlin had a special international legal status. After the end of World War II, two sovereign states formed as a result of the split of Germany: the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic, as well as a special political and territorial unit of West Berlin. The Government of the USSR, in agreement with the Government of the German Democratic Republic in 1958, proposed that West Berlin, located in the German Democratic Republic, be given the status of a demilitarized free city capable of performing international functions under the guarantee of four powers: Britain, the USSR, the USA, and France

The international legal status of West Berlin was determined by the Quadripartite Agreement signed by the governments of Great Britain, the USSR, the USA and France on September 3, 1971. In accordance with this document, West Berlin had a unique international legal status. The state-political structure of West Berlin was determined by the Constitution, which entered into force on October 1, 1950. The international legal personality of West Berlin was limited. The city had its own diplomatic and consular corps accredited by the relevant authorities of the governments of the USA, Great Britain and France. The USSR, with the consent of the governments of these countries, established the Consulate General. West Berlin had the right to participate in international negotiations, conclude agreements regarding communications, telegraphs, regulate trips of permanent residents to various regions of the German Democratic Republic, etc. Germany represented the western sectors of Berlin in international organizations and conferences. The special status of West Berlin was revoked in 1990. In accordance with the Treaty on the final settlement of Germany in respect of September 12, 1990, the united Germany includes the territories of the German Democratic Republic, Germany and the whole of Berlin. Vatican. In 1929, on the basis of the Lateran Treaty, signed by the papal representative of Gaspari and the head of the Italian government Mussolini, the "state" of the Vatican was artificially created (the agreement was revised in 1984). The creation of the Vatican was dictated by the desire of Italian fascism in its domestic and foreign policy to enlist the active support of the Catholic Church. The Lateran Treaty preamble defines the international legal status of the Vatican City state as follows: to ensure absolute and explicit independence for the Holy See, guaranteeing undisputed sovereignty on the international scene, the need for the creation of a "state" of the Vatican was recognized, recognizing its full ownership in relation to the Holy See , exclusive and absolute power and sovereign jurisdiction. The main goal of the Vatican is to create conditions for independent rule for the head of the Catholic Church. At the same time, the Vatican is an independent international personality. He maintains external relations with many states, establishes in these states his permanent missions (embassies), headed by papal nuncions or internations (Article 14 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961). Vatican delegations participate in international organizations and conferences. He is a member of several intergovernmental organizations (IAEA, ITU, UPU, etc.), has permanent observers at the UN, FAO, UNESCO and other organizations. According to the Vatican's Basic Law (Constitution), the right to represent the state belongs to the head of the Catholic Church - the pope. In this case, it is necessary to distinguish the agreements concluded by the pope as the head of the church for church affairs (concordatas) from secular agreements that he concludes on behalf of the Vatican city.

State-like entities

State-like entities have a certain amount of international legal personality. They are endowed with an appropriate scope of rights and obligations and thereby become subjects of international law. Such entities have territory, sovereignty, have their own citizenship, legislative assembly, government, international treaties.

Among them were the so-called. Free Cities, West Berlin. This category of subjects includes the Vatican, the Order of Malta and Mount Athos. Since these formations are most similar to mini-states and have almost all the features of a state, they are called "state-like formations."

The legal capacity of free cities was determined by relevant international treaties. So, according to the provisions of the Vienna Treaty of 1815, Krakow was declared a free city (1815 - 1846). According to the Versailles Peace Treaty of 1919, Danzig (Gdansk) (1920-1939) enjoyed the status of a “free state”, and in accordance with the peace treaty with Italy in 1947, the creation of the Free Territory of Trieste, which, however, was never created.

The special status granted by the quadripartite agreement on West Berlin in 1971 was enjoyed by West Berlin (1971 - 1990). In accordance with this agreement, the western sectors of Berlin were united into a special political entity with their own authorities (Senate, prosecutor's office, court, etc.), which were transferred part of their powers, for example, the issuance of normative acts. A number of powers were exercised by the allied authorities of the victorious powers. The interests of the population of West Berlin in international relations were represented and defended by consular officials Germany.

Vatican - A city-state located within the capital of Italy - Rome. Here is the residence of the head of the Catholic Church - the Pope. The legal status of the Vatican is determined by the Lateran agreements signed between the Italian state and the Holy See on February 11, 1929, which are mainly valid at present. In accordance with this document, the Vatican enjoys certain sovereign rights: it has its own territory, legislation, citizenship, etc. The Vatican is actively involved in international relations, establishes permanent missions in other states (the Vatican has a representative office in Russia), headed by papal nuncios (ambassadors), participates in international organizations, in conferences, signs international treaties, etc.

Order of Malta It is a religious formation with an administrative center in Rome. The Order of Malta is actively involved in international relations, concludes treaties, exchanges missions with states, and has observer missions at the UN, UNESCO and several other international organizations.

The Holy Mount Athos (Athos) is an independent monastic state located on a peninsula in Eastern Greece, in the region of Halkidiki. It is in the possession of a special Orthodox monastic association. Management is carried out jointly by representatives of each of the 20 monasteries. The governing body of Athos is the Holy Kinot, which includes representatives of all 20 monasteries of Athos. And the highest church authority on Athos does not belong to the Athenian patriarch, but to Constantinople, as in the Byzantine era. Entrance to the territory of a state-like education is prohibited for women and even for female pets. Pilgrims need to obtain special permission - “diamonitirion” to visit the Holy Mount Athos. IN last years The European Council has repeatedly demanded that the Greek government open access to Athos to all comers, including women. The Orthodox Church strongly opposes this in order to preserve the traditional monastic way of life.

State-like entities are special political-religious or political-territorial units that, on the basis of an international act or international recognition, have a relatively independent international legal status.

They primarily include the so-called "free cities" and free territories.

In principle, free cities were created as one of the ways to freeze territorial claims and mitigate interstate relations of tension arising over the ownership of a territory. A free city is created on the basis of an international agreement or a decision of an international organization and is a kind of state with limited legal capacity. It has its own constitution or act of a similar nature, the highest state bodies, citizenship. Its armed forces are purely defensive in nature or are more likely to be forces for the protection of borders and the maintenance of law and order. The creators of a free city usually provide ways to monitor compliance with its status, for example, appoint their representatives or representative for this purpose. In the international arena, free cities are represented by either interested states or an international organization.

The status of the Free City of Danzig, which existed between the two world wars, was guaranteed by the League of Nations, and Poland represented the interests of the city in foreign relations. The free territory of Trieste, created on the basis of a peace treaty with Italy in 1947 and divided between Italy and Yugoslavia by the 1954 agreement, was protected by the UN Security Council.

West Berlin had a unique international legal status in accordance with the Quadripartite Agreement of the USSR, Great Britain, the USA and France of September 3, 1971. These states retained the special rights and responsibilities that they assumed after the surrender of fascist Germany with respect to West Berlin, which maintained official relations with the GDR and the FRG. The FRG government represented the interests of West Berlin in international organizations and at conferences, provided consular services to its permanent residents. The USSR established a consulate general in West Berlin. In connection with the unification of Germany in 1990, the rights and responsibilities of the four powers in relation to West Berlin were terminated, since it became part of the united Federal Republic of Germany.

Currently, state-like entities with special international legal status are the Vatican (Holy See) as the official center of the Roman Catholic Church and the Order of Malta as an official religious formation with internationally recognized charitable functions. Their administrative residences are in Rome.

Outwardly, the Vatican (Holy See) possesses almost all the attributes of the state - a small territory, government and administration. However, we can only speak about the Vatican’s population conditionally: these are the relevant officials involved in the affairs of the Catholic Church. However, the Vatican is not a state; rather, it can be considered as the administrative center of the Catholic Church. A feature of his status is, among other things, that he has diplomatic relations with a number of states that officially recognize him as a subject of international law.

The Order of Malta in 1889 was recognized as a sovereign entity. The seat of the order is Rome. His official goal is charity. He has diplomatic relations with many states. The Order has no territory or population. Its sovereignty and international legal personality is a legal fiction.

The international legal status is also enjoyed by some political and territorial entities. Among them were the so-called. Free Cities, West Berlin. This category of subjects includes the Vatican and the Order of Malta. Since these formations are most similar to mini-states and have almost all the features of a state, they are called "state-like formations."

The legal capacity of free cities was determined by relevant international treaties. Thus, according to the provisions of the Vienna Treaty of 1815, Krakow (1815-1846) was declared a free city. According to the Versailles Peace Treaty of 1919, Danzig enjoyed the status of a “free state” (1920-1939), and in accordance with the peace treaty with Italy in 1947, the creation of the Free Territory of Trieste was provided, which, however, was never created.

The special status granted by the quadripartite agreement on West Berlin in 1971 was enjoyed by West Berlin (1971-1990). In accordance with this agreement, the western sectors of Berlin were united into a special political entity with their own authorities (Senate, prosecutor's office, court, etc.), which were transferred part of their powers, for example, the issuance of normative acts. A number of powers were exercised by the allied authorities of the victorious powers. The interests of the population of West Berlin in international relations were represented and defended by consular officials of the FRG.

The Vatican is a city-state located within the capital of Italy - Rome. Here is the residence of the head of the Catholic Church - the Pope. The legal status of the Vatican is determined by the Lateran agreements signed between the Italian state and the Holy See on February 11, 1929, which are mainly valid at present. In accordance with this document, the Vatican enjoys certain sovereign rights: it has its own territory, legislation, citizenship, etc. The Vatican is actively involved in international relations, establishes permanent missions in other states (the Vatican has a representative office in Russia), headed by papal nuncios (ambassadors), participates in international organizations, in conferences, signs international treaties, etc.

The Order of Malta is a religious formation with an administrative center in Rome. The Order of Malta is actively involved in international relations, concludes treaties, exchanges missions with states, and has observer missions at the UN, UNESCO and several other international organizations *.

The international legal status of the Federation

In international practice, as well as in foreign international legal doctrine, it is recognized that the subjects of some federations are independent states, the sovereignty of which is limited to joining the federation. The subjects of the federation recognize the right to speak in international relations within the framework established by federal law.

The German constitution, for example, provides that land, with the consent of the federal government, may enter into agreements with foreign states. Norms of a similar content are enshrined in the law of some other federal states. At present, the lands of the Federal Republic of Germany, the provinces of Canada, the states of the USA, the states of Australia and other entities that are recognized as subjects of international law in this regard are actively involved.

The international activity of subjects of foreign federations develops in the following main areas: the conclusion of international agreements; opening representative offices in other states; participation in the activities of some international organizations.

The question arises: are there international rules on the international legal personality of the subjects of the federation?

As you know, the most important element of international legal personality is contractual legal capacity. It represents the right to directly participate in the creation of international legal norms and is inherent in any subject of international law from the moment of its occurrence.

The issues of conclusion, execution and termination of treaties by states are governed primarily by the Vienna Convention on the Law international treaties 1969 Neither the 1969 Convention nor other international documents provide for the possibility of independent conclusion of international treaties by the subjects of the federation.

Generally speaking, international law does not contain a ban on the establishment of contractual relations between states and subjects of federations and subjects among themselves. However, international law does not classify these agreements as international treaties, just as the contracts between the state and a large foreign enterprise are not such. In order to be a subject of law of international treaties, it is not enough to be a party to one or another international agreement. It is still necessary to have legal capacity to conclude international treaties.

The question arises of the international legal status of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

The international legal status of entities Russian Federation

As is known, the 1977 Constitution of the USSR recognized the union republics as subjects of international law. Ukraine and Belarus were members of the UN , participated in many international treaties. Less active participants international relations there were other union republics whose constitutions provided for the possibility of concluding international treaties and exchanging missions with foreign states. With the collapse of the USSR, the former Union republics gained full international legal personality, and the problem of their status as independent subjects of international law has disappeared.

However, the sovereignty processes that embraced the newly independent states raised the question of the legal personality of the former national-state (autonomous republics) and administrative-territorial (oblasts, territories) entities. This problem acquired particular significance with the adoption of the new Constitution of the Russian Federation of 1993 and the conclusion of the Federal Treaty. Today, some subjects of the Russian Federation have declared their international legal personality.

The subjects of the Russian Federation try to independently act in international relations, enter into agreements with subjects of foreign federations and administrative-territorial units, exchange missions with them and fix the relevant provisions in their legislation. The charter of the Voronezh region of 1995, for example, recognizes that the organizational and legal forms of international relations of the region are forms generally accepted in international practice, with the exception of treaties (agreements) of the interstate level. Taking part in international and foreign economic relations independently or with other constituent entities of the Russian Federation, the Voronezh region opens representative offices on the territory of foreign states to represent the interests of the region, which act in accordance with the legislation of the host country.

Regulations of some constituent entities of the Russian Federation provide for the possibility of concluding international treaties on their own behalf. So, Art. 8 of the Charter of the Voronezh region in 1995 establishes that international treaties of the Voronezh region are part of the legal system of the region. Norms of a similar content are recorded in Art. 6 of the Charter Sverdlovsk region 1994, Art. 45 of the Charter (Basic Law) of the Stavropol Territory 1994, Art. 20 of the Charter of the Irkutsk Region of 1995 and other charters of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, as well as in the constitutions of the republics (Article 61 of the Constitution of the Republic of Tatarstan).

Moreover, in some constituent entities of the Russian Federation, normative acts have been adopted that regulate the procedure for concluding, executing and terminating contracts, for example, the law of the Tyumen region “On international agreements of the Tyumen region and agreements of the Tyumen region with the subjects of the Russian Federation”, 1995, the Law of the Voronezh region “On legal normative acts of the Voronezh region "1995 establishes (Article 17) that the authorities state power regions have the right to conclude agreements, which are normative legal acts, with the state authorities of the Russian Federation, with the subjects of the Russian Federation, with foreign states on issues of common interest to them.

However, the statements of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation on their international contractual legal capacity do not yet mean, in my deep conviction, the existence of this legal quality in reality. An analysis of relevant legislation is required.

Federal law does not yet address this issue.

According to the Constitution of the Russian Federation (paragraph "o" part 1 of article 72), coordination of international and foreign economic relations of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation refers to the joint jurisdiction of the Russian Federation and constituent entities of the Russian Federation. However, the Constitution does not directly speak of the possibility of constituent entities of the Russian Federation to conclude agreements that would be international treaties. The Federal Treaty does not contain such norms.

The federal law “On international treaties of the Russian Federation” of 1995 also relates the conclusion of international treaties of the Russian Federation to the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation. It has been established that international treaties of the Russian Federation affecting issues related to the jurisdiction of the constituent entities of the Federation are concluded in agreement with the relevant bodies of the constituent entities. In this case, the main provisions of the agreements affecting joint management should be sent to make proposals to the relevant authorities of the subject of the federation, which, however, do not have the right to veto the conclusion of the agreement. The law of 1995 does not say anything about the agreements of the subjects of the Federation.

It should be borne in mind that neither the Constitution of the Russian Federation, nor the Federal Constitutional Law “On the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation” of July 21, 1994 fix the rules on the verification of the constitutionality of international treaties of constituent entities of the Federation, although such a procedure is provided for in relation to international treaties of the Russian Federation.

As regards the practice of exchanging missions with subjects of foreign federations, this quality is not the main thing in characterizing the international legal personality, however, we note that this issue has not yet been settled in the Constitution or in the legislation of the Russian Federation. The indicated representative offices are not opened on the basis of reciprocity and are accredited to any authority of a subject of a foreign federation or territorial unit. These bodies, being foreign legal entities, do not have the status of diplomatic or consular missions and they are not subject to the provisions of the relevant conventions on diplomatic and consular relations.

The same can be said about the membership of constituent entities of the Russian Federation in international organizations. It is known that the charters of some international organizations (UNESCO, WHO, etc.) allow the membership of entities that are not independent states. However, firstly, membership in these organizations of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation has not yet been formalized, and, secondly, this feature, as already mentioned, is far from the most important in characterizing the subjects of international law.

Given the above, we can draw the following conclusion:

although at present the constituent entities of the Russian Federation do not fully possess all the elements of international legal personality, the tendency to develop their legal personality and formalize them into subjects of international law is evident. In my opinion, this issue needs to be addressed in federal law.