Danylchenko O. Modern International Legal Doctrine of the People’s Republic of China

The dissertation is dedicated to studying the theoretical and practical foundations of the formation and development of the modern international legal doctrine of the People’s Republic of China. It aims to explore its peculiarities and contributions to the science of international law. This work represents the first comprehensive and systematic research within Ukrainian international legal scholarship on the theory of international law with Chinese characteristics. It delves into its historical aspects and examines various approaches to understanding the main categories of international law, all while considering the unique civilization features of the Chinese state. The study reveals the essence and primary theoretical approaches to defining the concept of ―doctrine‖ in international law. In this research, the international legal doctrine of the People’s Republic of China is examined not only through the traditional lens of Article 38 of the ICJ Statute (as ―the teachings of the most highly qualified publicists of the various nations, as subsidiary means for the determination of rules of law‖) but also in a broader context – as a foreign policy position of the State that may have international legal implications. In our view, it is this interpretation of the doctrine that enables a systematic and comprehensive analysis of the structure and important features of modern international legal doctrine of the PRC. Based on the findings of the study, the author concludes that a key distinction lies in the fact that only institutions authorized by the State to conduct international legal research are able to develop the official international legal doctrine of the PRC, as well as determine doctrinal international legal approaches to contemporary international issues involving the PRC. At the same time, individual specialists – international lawyers, groups of experts, and academic societies – who are not directly authorized by the State to do so are only allowed to develop the science of international law in the PRC. In addition, a notable feature of China’s international legal practice is that doctrinal provisions on significant issues related to the state’s position in international relations are exclusively published by authorized state authorities and state research institutions, commonly referred to as ―color books‖.