Our New Visiting Fellow: Natia Kalandarishvili-Mueller

8 August 2022

Natia Kalandarishvili-Mueller is a professor of international law at ALTE University in Tbilisi, Georgia.

She holds an LLM in International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and Human Rights from the Geneva Academy and a PhD in Law from the University of Essex.

Natia just started as a Visiting Fellow at the Geneva Academy and will stay with us until the end of November 2022.

What motivated you to carry out a fellowship at the Geneva Academy?

On the world map, the Geneva Academy is the place for IHL teaching and analysis. The Geneva Academy is a hub of vibrant IHL research. It is a place of constant learning and interesting events dedicated to understanding some of the most pressing issues in IHL theory and practice. My desire to spend a research stay at the Geneva Academy is based on all this.

As an alumna of our LLM, how does it feel to come back?

It feels like coming home. I owe much of my knowledge in IHL to the Geneva Academy. Studying IHL under Professor Sassòli’s supervision was a great privilege for me as an LLM student from Georgia. I’ve been dearly missing the ambience of the Geneva Academy and to be back, is truly a joy. I fondly remember studying here. And to be able to carry out my research within these walls is a bliss.

What will be the focus of your research during this fellowship?

My research will focus on conceptualising extraterritorial non-international armed conflicts in IHL.

Why is this issue important?

As is known, there are only two types of armed conflicts in IHL: international and non-international. Hence, how can extraterritorial non-international armed conflicts be conceptualised in light of the IHL framework’s applicability? Into which category and with which types of armed conflicts can they be placed? Should they be regarded as a third, new category of armed conflicts? This is what my research will focus on.

What will be the impact of this research?

My research will contribute to filling a gap left in classifying such armed conflicts through the prism of IHL.

What do you expect from your time at the Geneva Academy?

I expect to be actively working on my own research topic, being in parallel engaged with colleagues and the wider research community on other contested issues of IHL. I am very much looking forward to this. I would like to thank the Geneva Academy for this opportunity.

MORE ON THIS THEMATIC AREA

An LLM class News

Apply to our LLM in International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights!

28 November 2022

Applications for the 2023–2024 academic year of our LLM in International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights are open. They will run until 27 January 2023 for applications with a scholarship and until 23 February 2023 for applications without a scholarship.

Read more

A session of the PhD Forum predecessor, the Geneva Academy Wednesdays News

The PhD Forum: A Space for Exchange for Researchers and PhD Students

11 November 2022

The Geneva Academy PhD Forum is a space that gathers PhD researchers and experts – in Geneva and beyond – who work in the scientific focus area of the Geneva Academy.

Read more

Portrait of Professor Chiara Giorgetti Event

International Law Responses to Russia’s Aggression – Building an International Reparation Mechanism for Ukraine

18 April 2023, 18:30-21:00

In this lecture organized with the MIDS, Professor Chiara Giorgetti will discuss current efforts to create a reparation mechanism for Ukraine in order to hold Russia liable for its violations of international law.

Read more

Central African Republic,  Bangui. Soldiers of the Democratic Republic of Congo patrol the Multinational Force of Central African States - Event

Duties to One's Own Population and Combatants in War: Is there an ‘Internal’ Jus in Bello?

11 May 2023, 18:30-20:00

In this talk, Professor Frédéric Mégret will seek to excavate an understanding of IHL as partly about protecting one’s population rather than minimizing harm to ‘other’ populations.

Read more

Syria, Harasta, destroyed buildings Training

Advanced IHL Seminar for Academics and Policymakers

28 August - 1 September 2023

Organized by the Geneva Academy and the ICRC, the Advanced IHL seminar for academics and humanitarian policymakers aims to enhance the capacity of academics to teach and research IHL and contemporary issues arising during armed conflict, while also equipping policymakers with an in-depth understanding of ongoing legal debates and their relevance to decision-making.

Read more

Yemen,  Sana'a, Faj Attan district. Destruction. Short Course

From Use of Force to Responsibility to Protect

24 May - 6 June 2023

This online short course provides an overview of the content and evolution of the rules governing the use of unilateral force in international law, including military intervention on humanitarian grounds and the fight against international terrorism. It focuses on the practice of states and international organizations.

Read more

A session of the UN Human Rights Council Project

IHL Expert Pool

Started in January 2022

The IHL-EP works to strengthen the capacity of human rights mechanisms to incorporate IHL into their work in an efficacious and comprehensive manner. By so doing, it aims to address the normative and practical challenges that human rights bodies encounter when dealing with cases in which IHL applies.

Read more

Cover page of the study Publication

From Words to Deeds A Study of Armed Non-State Actors’ Practice and Interpretation of International Humanitarian and Human Rights Norms: Research and Policy Conclusions

published on September 2022

Annyssa Bellal, Pascal Bongard, Ezequiel Heffes

Read more