Commentary: U.S. is a saboteur of contemporary international law

The United States is sabotaging international law by violating global rules of conduct and adopting double standards.

The Charter of the United Nations (UN) stipulates that "all Members should refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations."

However, the United States has repeatedly despised and infringed upon international rules.

On Dec. 20, 1989, the U.S. army invaded Panama to topple Panamanian general Manuel Antonio Noriega.

On March 24, 1999, U.S.-led NATO forces, without authorization from the UN Security Council, launched military strikes against a sovereignty state -- the Yugoslav Serb Republic.

On March 20, 2003, the United States along with its allies launched a war against Iraq on the assertion that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction which turned out to be false.

And when international law stands in the way of U.S. interests, it will simply withdraw from any binding agreement.

In 1998 the United States signed the Kyoto Protocol which sought to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 5 percent from 1990 levels by 2012. But in 2001, Washington withdrew from the 128-nation protocol, saying it was too expensive and wrongly excluded developing nations. It also unilaterally withdrew from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, which it signed with the Soviet Union in 1972.

Furthermore, Washington refused to ratify the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. Joining both would greatly enhance global peace and reduce the risk of conflict.

All in all, it is hard to find an international rule that was created by the United States and carried out by the country from beginning to end. Uncle Sam gets used to looking down on international law, considering it a hindrance to its hegemony.

Current international law with the UN Charter at its core was formed after the end of World War II and the establishment of the United Nations, and gradually became the rule of conduct for the international community.

However, with the end of the Cold War and arrival of economic globalization and network informatization, international law faces new challenges.

Today, the development and evolution of international law has become an irresistible trend and should be promoted through international agreements, practices and judicial precedents.

Meanwhile, it is time for emerging countries to actively participate in the process, improve on the current mechanisms in place to solve international disputes and reduce the influence of developed countries in dictating the management of international affairs. Endi