초판발행 2021.09.30

Volume 8 of the Korean Yearbook of International Law collects three articles on the theme of greater cooperation and peace in East Asia, together with special reports and notes on recent international law developments. The collection is rounded out by translations of two Korean statutes which are not available in English on the Office of Legislation website. We hope it provides an illuminating snapshot of international law development and thought in and around Korea.

In the first article Professor Emeritus LEE Jang-Hie elucidates how the failure of the San Francisco Peace Treaty to reflect the principles of the Cairo Declaration led to some of the current conflicts in East Asia, hindering peace and mutual cooperation in the region. As a solution, Professor LEE suggests the adoption of a Civil Society Charter toward the establishment of a peaceful East Asian community to overcome the destructive legacy of colonialism and the Cold War which were never properly resolved by the hegemonic powers.

The need for regional cooperation in East Asia is further made evident in the specific area of marine pollution, which is the subject of Professor SUNG Jae-Ho’s contribution. Between land-based pollution and ocean radioactivity in the wake of the Fukushima disaster and its aftermath, Professor SUNG reminds us that the general principles of international environmental law such as prohibition of abuse of rights, good neighborliness, precautionary principle, and polluter pays principle are very salient for the resolution of these issues and for better international cooperation.

Professor GUAN Jian-Qiang continues on the theme of history’s long reach into the present by discussing international legal disputes arising out of the ROK-Japan Agreement of 1965 and its failure to fully resolve individual claims arising out of Imperial Japan’s mobilization of forced laborers and so-called “comfort women.” The article explains the human rights violations by the Japanese government and the illegitimacy of the conscriptions during colonization, and lays out the measures that victims of these state crimes may be able to take.

The Special Reports discuss Japan’s application of the theory of terra nullius to Dokdo, the types of exchange and cooperation projects South and North Korea can engage in under the UN sanctions against North Korea, the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol in South Korea, how the families of wrongful death victims could seek redress from North Korea in light of sovereign immunity, the legal assessment of the shooting death of a South Korean official by North Korea, and United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods issues raised before Korean courts.

The reports in the Recent Developments cover subjects including sovereignty over the disputed island Dokdo, proposed amendments to the Refugee Act, atmospheric environmental cooperation in Northeast Asia, South Korea’s state practices in regard to North Korea, and the new Bill on Private International Law.

The Contemporary Practice and Judicial Decisions section presents an extradition case that caused tremendous controversy in Korea recently, when the Seoul High Court denied extradition to the United States of the convicted proprietor of a large international child sexual abuse website. The case is a window into how the Korean courts make extradition judgments by balancing the different interests that come into play.

Finally, the translated texts of Korea’s International Ship and Port Facility Security Act and the Marine Environment Management Act are presented as reference material for international scholars and practitioners. Both are crucial issues as ship and port security is an indispensable component of international exchange and commerce, while marine and other environmental issues across borders are classic cases of issues requiring transnational cooperation. Although both pieces of legislation are domestic, those who reference the texts will find them replete with references to international coordination, providing another glimpse into how enmeshed international systems of cooperation have become in the governance of these areas of international interface.

The overall picture painted by this volume on the state of international legal practice in Northeast Asia is one of conflict and crises, with the roots of some of these problems stretching back into the previous century. This makes the resolution of historical injustices such as forced conscription and the dispute over Dokdo a present and urgent issue.

Yet the picture is also one of hope, where we need each other to face and solve common problems in commerce, security, criminal justice, and the environment among other areas. There can be no peaceful and prosperous coexistence in Asia unless the countries and peoples in the region are willing to work with each other. Despite our differences, perhaps it is that mutual need that will ultimately be our common ground and lead us to becoming a community, both in the institutional and social sense.

We would like to thank the authors for the gift of their expertise and time that made this Yearbook possible, along with the work of the editorial staff. Professor CHOI Seung-Hwan, the Editor-in-Chief, provided clear-eyed and steady guidance while MIN Joon-Sun, the staff editor, made publication possible with energetic and exacting work. I hope the result of these efforts, the volume you hold in your hands, will be of value to academics and practitioners alike.

LEE Jee Hyung
Executive Editor
Korean Yearbook of International Law

Professor, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea

AHN Hosung
Lecturer, Korea Military Academy, Seoul, Korea

AHN Jun-Hyeong
Assistant Professor, Korea National Defense University
Research Fellow, Research Institute for National Security Affairs, KNDU

LEE Jong Hyeok
Assistant Professor
Hanyang University, School of Law, Seoul, Korea

DOH See-Hwan
Senior Research Fellow
Northeast Asian History Foundation, Seoul, Korea

LEE Seryon
Professor
Jeonbuk National University, School of Law, Jeonju, Korea

CHUNG Min-Jung
Legislative Research Officer
National Assembly Research Service, Seoul, Korea

PARK Eon-Kyung
Visiting Professor
Kyung Hee University, Office of Career Development, Seoul, Korea

LEE Gyooho
Professor
Chung-Ang University, School of Law, Seoul, Korea

LEE Jee-Hyung
Executive Editor
International law researcher

LEE Keun-Gwan
Professor
School of Law, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea

LEE Jee-Hyung
Executive Editor
International law researcher

PARK Hyeon-Seok
Professor
Department of Law, Hongik University, Seoul, Korea

LEE Jee-Hyung
Executive Editor
International law researcher

PARK Hyeon-Seok
Professor
Department of Law, Hongik University, Seoul, Korea

JANG Jiyong
High Court Judge
Suwon High Court, Suwon, Korea

EDITORIAL NOTE
LEE Jee-Hyung 

ARTICLES

LEE Jang-Hie
The Core Values of the Cairo Declaration and an Exit Strategy to Overcome the Limitations of the San Francisco Peace Treaty

SUNG Jae-Ho·SEO Jin-Woong
International Laws and Rules Regulating Marine Pollution from Land-Based Sources - Focused on Yellow Sea

GUAN Jian-Qiang·GUAN Yue
International Legal Disputes and Solutions concerning the ROK-Japan Agreement of 1965

SPECIAL REPORTS

KANG Pyoungkeun
The Mysterious Application of Terra Nullius to the Status of Dokdo in Korea-Japan Relations

CHOI Seung-Hwan
Types of Exchange and Cooperation Projects Available between South and North Korea under the UN Non-Proliferation Resolutions against North Korea

CHUNG Min-Jung
Present Status andCharacteristics of Atmospheric Environmental Cooperation in Northeast Asia Led by the Republic of Korea Using International Organization

KIM Doo-Su
Implementation of the Nagoya Protocol in the Republic of Korea

BAEK Bhum-Suk·AHN Hosung
An Exception to Sovereign Immunity? The Implication of the Warmbier et al. v. DPRK Judgment

AHN Jun-Hyeong
Shooting Death of a Missing South Korean Official by North Korea Near the Island of Yeonpyeong: A Legal Assessment under International Law

LEE Jong Hyeok
Some Private International Law Issues in CISG Cases at Korean Courts 

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

DOH See-Hwan
Revisiting International Legal Titles on the 120th Anniversary of Korean Imperial Ordinance No. 41 and Dokdo’s Sovereignty

LEE Seryon
An Overview of the Legislative Amendment Proposal to the Refugee Act of the Republic of Korea

​CHUNG Min-Jung
Resolutions Related to International Law Adopted by the 21st National Assembly in 2020

PARK Eon-Kyung
State Practices of the Republic of Korea Related to DPRK

LEE Gyooho
International Jurisdiction under the Bill of Korea’s Act on Private International Law

CONTEMPORARY PRACTICE AND JUDICIAL DECISIONS

LEE Jee-Hyung·LEE Keun-Gwan
Judicial Decisions in Pubic International Law (2020)

LEE Jee-Hyung·PARK Hyeon-Seok
International Ship and Port Facility Security Act

LEE Jee-Hyung·PARK Hyeon-Seok
Marine Environment Management Act

JANG Jiyong
Judicial Decisions in Private International Law (2020)

Treaties/Agreements Concluded by the Republic of Korea

INDEX
AUTHOR GUIDELINES AND STYLE SHEET