Regional International Organizations and Regionalism in the Theory of International Law

This article explores the relationship between international law and space with particular attention to regionalism. Focusing on theoretical debates in the discipline, it will examine the interplay between regionalism and Regional International Organizations and the universal character of international law, re-describing central theoretical legal issues concerning this relationship. Regionalism will be assessed as one form of spatial ordering in international law. Regional order is an international legal notion that contributes to a more nuanced understanding of the politics of space and the processes of production, organization and distribution of power, resources and identities in a particular region. In this setting, changes in the spatial focus while employing theoretical interrogations in the discipline are productive ways to make sense of the diverse modes of engagement with international law in different regions worldwide.