In the five years since the last edition of Shaw’s International Law there have been many developments which are fully reflected in the third edition. The chapter on the subjects of international law deals with the unilateral declaration of independence by Lithuania, one of the Baltic States unlawfully annexed by the Soviet Union (as it then was) in 1940, on 11 March 1990. It also deals with the consequences of the Compacts of Free Association entered into by the United States and the Federated States of Micronesia on the one hand and between the U.S. and the Republic of the Marshall Island on the other. The author goes on to explain that, since the proposed Compact of Free Association with the Republic of Palau did not enter into force, the U.S. continued to act as administering authority under the Trustee agreements. Professor Shaw also skilfully examines the protracted litigation of the South West Africa Cases, until Namibia finally obtained her independence on 23 April 1990.

The chapter on State Succession deals in a clear way with the series of dramatic events behind the iron curtain during 1989: some examples may be mentioned here: (a) the State Treaty on German Economic, Monetary and Social Union signed by the two German States on 18 May and which came into effect on 1 July 1990; (b) the State Treaty of Unification signed on 31 August 1990 providing for the unification on 3 October 1990 by accession of the German Democratic Republic, with Berlin as the Capital; and (c) the treaty signed on 12 September 1990 between the two German States and the four wartime allies; the author explains the objective of entering into this treaty, viz., the removal of the external legal obstacles to unity.

The present edition of Professor Shaw’s book takes into account other significant recent developments in international law such as the Kuwait crisis, the growth of international human rights law and the responsibility of international organizations. The new chapter on International Environmental Law is a welcome addition to the wide range of topics covered in the third edition.

Although the book is generally written in a sophisticated way, I feel that the author deals in a cursory manner with “Circumstance Precluding Wrongfulness” at pp. 499–502. This may, however, be attributed to considerations of space and nothing more. Without doubt, I regard this book as one of the best manuals of Public International Law written in the English language. Professor Shaw is to be congratulated for this excellent achievement.