Legitimität durch Pluralität

What makes international law legitimate? Based on a critique of the traditional idea of state voluntarism and canonical notions of legitimacy, this book develops an alternative conception of international legal legitimacy. Hannah Arendt's political thinking guides its normative analysis of historical developments, especially the so-called humanisation of international law, and helps to justify the claim that international law can be considered legitimate insofar as individuals can realise their own international legal subjectivity. Lastly, the study applies this conceptual approach to the legal field of maritime migration in order to explore the normative justification of the current practice of international law.