Introduction to International Nuclear Law

Overview

So, what is international nuclear law? What aspects of international cooperation exist in this direction? You will learn about this in our course.

Nuclear power gives us hope and potential for significant benefits, in a variety of fields, from medicine and agriculture to electricity production and industry. At the same time, we all know that nuclear energy poses serious risks to the health and safety of humans and to the environment. These risks must be managed very carefully and thoroughly. It is important to recognize that international legal norms for the regulation of nuclear energy are also a part of a State’s national legal system. In this course we will look at the most basic and fundamental areas and issues that need to be addressed when analyzing and developing legal norms for such a highly complex technology as nuclear power.

Syllabus

International Law

In the module 1 we will talk about international law in general, we look what it is, what aspects it covers. Then we move on international nuclear law, its principle, its legal coverage. And then we will study which is the most interesting part, we’ll take a closer look at major subject in international and national nuclear law.

General Principles of International Law and International Public Law of Treaties

This module is about general principles of international law recognized by civilized nations or more appropriate: the community of nations are a manifestation of international law. They can be found in the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning friendly relations and co-operation among states in accordance with the Charter of the UN.

International Public Law of Treaties

As we have already discussed, treaties are the principle source of public international law. In the third module we will look the content of treaties.

International Nuclear Law

In this module we will look at the most basic and fundamental areas and issues that need to be addressed when analyzing and developing legal norms for such a highly complex technology as nuclear power.

Principles of Nuclear Law

IAEA developed 11 legal principles applicable to the international nuclear law. This principles can be found in the IAEA Handbook on nuclear law. So, let’s take a look on them in module 5.

The Liability of Nuclear Damage

Many States have long recognized the risk of a nuclear accident causing transboundary damage. In the 6 module we will discuss such important questions as liability for nuclear damage, transboundary damage, national regimes.