At the same time, the UN has a democratic system of annual discussion of all world problems in the main body – the General Assembly, where all member states participate in the adoption of recommendatory decisions with the right to vote on the basis of the principle of their sovereign equality. This system of UN, although it seems to require constant updating, is on the whole the most advanced stage in the development of modern international law.
In accordance with the principles of the UN Charter, states have developed and put into effect many treaties that determine the current state of international relations. Such important treaties include agreements between Russia (USSR) and the United States on the reduction of strategic armament, the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, treaties on the prohibition of nuclear-weapon tests, agreements on the non-deployment of nuclear weapons in outer space, the Antarctic Treaty, agreements on nuclear-weapon-free zones in various regions of the world, treaties on NATO, the CIS\ (The CIS countries are the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) established in December 1991. The CIS unites: the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Republic of Armenia, the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Republic of Moldova, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Tajikistan, the Republic of Uzbekistan and Ukraine) \,the European Community, agreements on regional integration associations, the OSCE Final Act, Vienna Conventions on Diplomatic and Consular Relations, Statutes of the UN Specialized Agencies, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenants on Civil and Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982, agreements on the protection of the environment and natural resources and so on.
The listed and many other agreements and declarations, as well as decisions of the UN and its international organizations, customs, recognized as legal norms, and decisions of international judicial bodies, form a general system of international law, within framework of which international relations are carried out today in all spheres of humankind existence.
&4 General provisions and the concept of international law of environmental protection
Surrounding Nature Environment – a complex of natural systems, natural objects and natural resources, including atmospheric air, water, land, subsoil resources, flora and fauna, as well as climate in their interconnection and interaction.
A favorable natural environment – such a state of natural objects that form the environment created by human being, as well as the quality of life and conditions that meets the legally established standards and regulations regarding its cleanliness, resource intensity, ecological sustainability, species diversity and aesthetic richness.
Protection of the natural environment – activities to preserve and restore (if it is violated) a favorable state of the ambient environment, prevent its degradation in the process of social development and maintain ecological balance.
The concept and resources of international environmental law.
International environmental law – a set of international legal principles and norms, regulating international relations regarding the protection of the environment from harmful effects, the rational use of its individual elements in order to ensure optimal conditions for the life and health of individuals, as well as the very existence of mankind as a whole.