Zwischen Funktion, Interaktion und Exklusion - Die Rolle des Verfahrensrechts im Rahmen völkerrechtlicher Verträge

What is the role of procedure in international treaty negotiations? Unlike national parliaments, the makers of international treaty law are not subjected to many binding rules about how to negotiate treaty texts outside of the sparse guidelines contained in the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties. Yet in fact, most treaty negotiating conferences do in fact follow intricate sets of so-called rules of procedure (RoP). This article explores how the RoP influence treaty-making. It first offers some insight into the realities of modern treaty negotiations as well as into the functioning of RoP. Both the initial treaty negotiation stage and subsequent conferences of the parties (CoP) are studied. The contribution offers three axes alongside which RoP influence treaty-making. Firstly, RoP serve the function of negotiation streamlining and efficiency as well as protecting states' interests vis à vis freeriders. Secondly, RoP, by creating rooms for open debate and discussion, invite states to interact with each other, thus helping trust develop and strengthening states' convictions regarding the bindingness of the laws discussed. Thirdly, RoP can exclude - by accident or by design - those states who are unable to participate in the intricate procedures prescribed by them due to lack of resources. The article argues that these three dimensions - of function, interaction, and exclusion - need to be read together to make the influence of RoP on international treaty law intelligible.