Title: The Anxiety of Limbo: Contested Statehood in International Law
Expected completion date: 2026
PhD Supervisor: Nico Krisch
My thesis explores the fragmented nature of personality attributable to secessionist entities that claim statehood under international law, focusing on how they position themselves in the international system to navigate the constraints imposed by mother-state sovereignty, territorial integrity, institutional law, and policies of non-recognition.
Victor S. Mariottini de Oliveira is a double-qualified lawyer in Portugal and Brazil and a second-year PhD candidate in International Law at the Geneva Graduate Institute. He holds a summa cum laude LL.M. in International Economic Law from the Institute and a bachelor's degree in Law from the University of São Paulo, Brazil with two exchange semesters at Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona. His academic interests range from general international law to territorial disputes, international dispute settlement, self-determination and statehood, as well as international security, trade, and investment law. Before coming to Geneva, Victor worked at the Capital Markets transactional practice of Clifford Chance LLP in São Paulo and was a legal assistant to Prof. Luiz Olavo Baptista in international arbitration proceedings. He was a teaching assistant in public international law courses at the University of São Paulo and at Universitat Pompeu Fabra. Recently, Victor accumulated work experiences at UNCTAD and Qatar’s Mission to the WTO in Geneva. He is currently a Teaching Assistant at the International Law department of the Institute.
Territorial Disputes
Trade Law
Statehood
Secession
Investment Law
International Security
International Organizations
Self-Determination
International Institutional Law
International Dispute Settlement
Teaching Experience
Russia’s Passportization and the Pitfalls of ‘Personal Annexation’ in the Post-Soviet Space: Recasting the Limits of Nationality Attribution in International Law? European Society of International Law Research Paper Series (forthcoming)
State Succession to 'in rem' Obligations and the Right of Peoples to Self-Determination: a Case Study of Ethiopia's Grand Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile. University of Denver Water Law Review (forthcoming)
Statehood for Sale: Derecognition, “Rental Recognition”, and the Open Flanks of International Law. Jus Cogens (2023) Springer. Available at: <https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42439-023-00075-y>.
On Ceasefire Agreements and (Counter)Offensives: Notes on the Armenia-Azerbaijan Conflict and a Word of Caution for Ukraine, Völkerrechtsblog, 23.09.2022. Available at: <https://voelkerrechtsblog.org/on-ceasefire-agreements-and-counteroffensives/>.
The Uyghur Genocide and Remedial Secession: Legal Grounds for the Rebirth of East Turkistan? Cambridge Journal of International Law Blog. Available at: <http://cilj.co.uk/2021/04/12/the-uyghur-genocide-and-remedial-secession-legal-grounds-for-the-rebirth-of-east-turkistan/>.
Sailing Off the UNCLOS Radar: China’s Responsibility for Maritime Militia Activities in International Waters. Georgetown Journal of International Law Blog. Available at: <https://www.law.georgetown.edu/international-law-journal/blog/sailing-off-the-unclos-radar-chinas-responsibility-for-maritime-militia-activities-in-international-waters/>.
The Caucasus is a Delicate Chessboard: The Military Offensive for Nagorno-Karabakh and the Implications of the New Ceasefire Agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan. (in Portuguese). Cosmopolita. Available at: <https://www.cosmopolita.org/post/um-delicado-xadrez-no-c%C3%A1ucaso-implica%C3%A7%C3%B5es-do-acordo-de-cessar-fogo-entre-arm%C3%AAnia-e-azerbaij%C3%A3o>
Best Negotiator Award, 'Hours of Crisis’ Moot Competition
The Hague Academy of International Law, 2020 Winter Course
Nominated for ‘Best Laurea Thesis of 2020 Class’ award in International Law, University of São Paulo Law School, 2020.