Between State power and Human Rights: nationality in American International Law

Abstract

Classical International Law founded the regulation of nationality on the basis of two principles. First, everyone has one, and only one, nationality. Second, it is for each State to determine who its nationals are. Contemporary International Law, on the contrary, recognises nationality as a right of the individual and imposes on the States the duty to grant it in some cases. The article shows this evolution in the context of American law.