The Practice of Engagement without Recognition under International Law: A Tool for Combatting Human Trafficking

Abstract

This article argues that, even in the absence of international recognition, international law can make a real and meaningful impact in de facto states. Such impact can come about through engagement without recognition, which should be understood, not as a shadowy practice that takes place in the fringes of international law, but as a strategy that is fully compatible with international legal standards. The article makes this argument by relying on a detailed analysis of relevant case law of the European Court of Human Rights. It further proposes that reconceptualizing engagement without recognition can have important practical consequences in the fight against human trafficking, which has received regrettably limited attention by policymakers in de facto states.