This briefing provides a legal overview of the existing doctrine regarding recognition of states in international law.
Using historical examples, it shows that statehood is based on factors on the ground (the declaratory theory) and not simply on recognition by other states (the constituent theory).
For a state to be recognised, it must be consistent with the Estrada Doctrine (later codified in the Montevideo Convention). This holds that there must be a defined population, a defined territory and a functioning state that performs the functions of a public sector, and that the country is not wholly dependent on a third party.
Whatever one thinks of Palestine, the entity does not meet the criteria for statehood and recognition, and hence cannot be regarded as a state. For this reason, the ‘recognition’ of Palestine is legally void and of no consequence in law.
