Abstract
The definition of any issue subject to regulation appears to be one of the first steps necessary to achieve an efficient regulatory framework. In international law, however, it is not unusual to find concepts that still lack a universally accepted definition. This is precisely the case of the notion this contribution deals with: dual-use goods. Although this notion has a considerably extended international regulation in the frame of the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) – due to its relevance from both the commercial and development angle as well as the security perspective -, the lack of consensus when defining it entails some of the challenges which will be set out in this paper. In the absence of a legally complete and homogeneous definition, which is intrinsically difficult to achieve at present, we should not disregard the fact that the different approaches contained in the treaties and agreements regulating the non-proliferation of WMDs have managed to be accepted by a considerable majority of States that agree on the way of identifying this type of items. For this reason, this paper analyses how legally binding and soft-law sources of the current WMD non-proliferation regime (international treaties, export control regime guidelines, and UNSC Resolutions), approach dual-use goods and technologies. The analysis also classifies the different rules and regulations currently in force based on the criterion they employ to define the potential uses of these strategic items: peaceful vs. non-peaceful dichotomy, civil vs. military dichotomy and the intentionality criterion. The paper thus contributes to outline the legal borders within which the concept of “dual-use goods” is currently framed, it analyses how the existence of multiple criteria to define such items affects their international control and it makes possible to understand the evolution that this notion may undergo in the near future; an evolution capable of calling into question the standards of legal certainty that the international regime of dual-use items provides in this regard.
Panel: Arms Procurement and Transfers
Cite this presentation
@inproceedings{eiss-2021-what-do-we-talk-about-when-we-talk-about-dual-use-goods,
author = {Ana Sánchez Cobaleda},
title = {What Do We Talk About When We Talk About Dual-use Goods?},
booktitle = {European Security Studies Conference 2021},
year = {2021},
url = {https://eiss-europa.com/papers/2021-what-do-we-talk-about-when-we-talk-about-dual-use-goods.html}
}