ABSTRACT

This paper examines the relationship between national interest, diplomacy, and international law. It argues that, instead of hindering the development of U.S. imperial structures, international law functioned largely as a tool of U.S. empire and helped to maintain the international status quo during the first half of the twentieth century. Interwar American initiatives to create international arrangements that would produce a world without war were demonstrated most notably by the creation of the League of Nations (1919) and the Pact of Paris (1928). After World War II and decolonisation, international conditions changed profoundly. The U.S. retreated from international organisations and turned increasingly to unilateral action to pursue its priorities.

摘要

本文考察了国家利益、外交和国际法之间的关系。它认为，在 20 世纪上半叶，国际法并没有阻碍美帝国结构的发展，而是在很大程度上充当了美帝国的工具，并帮助维持了国际现状。国际联盟（1919 年）和巴黎公约（1928 年）的建立最显着地证明了美国在两次世界大战之间建立国际安排的倡议，以创造一个没有战争的世界。二战和非殖民化之后，国际形势发生了深刻变化。美国退出国际组织，越来越多地转向单边行动以追求其优先事项。