Territorial Sovereignty: A Philosophical Exploration

This book asks whether there is any compelling moral justification for organizing our world as a territorial states-system? Should we see this mode of political organization as just a firmly rooted historical contingency? Or are there ethical principles that might support or legitimate it? The book argues that three core values-occupancy, basic justice, and collective self-determination-are served by an international system made up of self-governing, spatially defined political units. Yet the book does not actually justify all the sovereignty rights states currently claim, and that are recognized in international law. It proposes important changes to states’ sovereign prerogatives, particularly with respect to internal autonomy for political minorities, immigration, and natural resources.