International inspections are a common technique of international law.
Inspectors visit prison camps, chemical factories, nuclear reactors, and
research stations in Antarctica — to assess whether the provisions of
international law are complied with. But notwithstanding this practical
relevance, international lawyers have tended to neglect international
inspections, at least as a general category: what studies exist, tend to
focus on particular regimes, providing much detail but insucient
orientation.
The present volume takes a diferent approach. It looks at a wide range
of inspection regimes and seeks to identify cross-cutting issues. While
reecting their heterogeneity, its central aim is to situate international
inspections in the wider eld of international law’s means of control and
to highlight elements of unity in diversity. Combining panoramic and
kaleidoscopic perspectives, the volume’s sixteen chapters encourage
international lawyers to engage more fully with international
inspections.