Self-determination in international law: A Kantian perspective

The right to self-determination is “one of the essential principles of international law” and has played a major role in the transformation of the international order. That right has traditionally been traced back to the French Revolution, through Wilson and Lenin, but rarely explicitly been linked to Immanuel Kant. This paper argues that Kant’s philosophy provides a solid basis for the construction of a theory of self-determination in international law, and that the idea of self-determination underlies much of Kant’s thought on international right. It discusses four aspects of self-determination: Kant’s emphasis on sovereignty and non-intervention; the relevance of the “original contract” and republican government; his permissive theory of territorial rights; and the role of the “league of nations”.