COVID-19 and the International obligations of states concerningControl of the pandemic diseases

In the vicissitudinous history of public health in the world, emerging andreemerging pandemic diseases as one of the realities of social life according toits context and time have repeatedly afflicted human civilizations. The rapidoutbreak of these diseases on a global scale without respect for the sanctity ofnational borders is a natural result and the logical consequence of thousands ofkinds of solidarity and interdependence between states and nations. The spreadof Covid-19 at the beginning of the third decade of the 21st century, and thedifferent reactions of states to the outbreak of this disease in the realm of theirterritory, indicate an astonishing dispersion to confront this insurgent virus.Today, there is no doubt that any effective measure to control and eradicatepandemic diseases such as Covid-19, has a close link with the cooperation andcoordination of members of the international community. The internationallegal system has played a prominent role in international efforts to controlcontagious and pandemic diseases. Although different and complex aspects ofthe relationship between the international legal system and pandemic diseaseshave involved a range of different legal regimes, with a little contemplationone can determine the closeness and the intersection between theirrequirements. The present essay seeks to provide an answer to the question ofwhat international obligations the international legal system has concerningthe control of pandemic diseases, especially Covid-19. The findings of thepresent study show that the 2005 International Health Regulations, along withsome provisions of the 1994 Agreement on the Application of Sanitary andPhytosanitary Measures, form the core of governments' internationalobligations to control pandemic diseases, including Covid-19, although thereare shortcomings in these Obligations.