What is it about?
This study was conducted to identify which international treaties achieve their intended objectives and understand which factors result in effective treaties. The study analyzed the effects of treaties in six policy domains. Only trade and finance treaties were associated with measurable progress in achieving the intended objectives of the treaties. The study also investigated whether treaty complaint, enforcement, oversight, and transparency mechanisms were associated with increased effectiveness and found that only enforcement mechanisms were associated with greater treaty effectiveness.
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Why is it important?
This study raises doubts about the value of treaties that neither regulate trade/finance nor contain enforcement mechanisms. Future treaties beyond trade/finance without enforcement mechanisms are unlikely worth their considerable effort and could cause harm.
Perspectives
This main finding about enforcement mechanisms is immediately relevant to ongoing diplomatic negotiations on International Health Regulations, the Pandemics Treaty, and the UN Treaty on Plastic Pollution. Countries that want treaties to matter will push to embed enforcement mechanisms within them.
Steven Hoffman
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: International treaties have mostly failed to produce their intended effects, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, August 2022, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2122854119.
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