Report on the special status of Åland under international law and on the legal issues related to the Russian Consulate in Mariehamn

The first part of the report discusses the special status of Åland under international law. This status is based on several treaties in force and references in other treaties as well as long-established consistent State practice. Of particular relevance is that Åland's special status was reaffirmed after the World Wars and other major political upheavals. This status is also considered to have been established as regional European customary law. In addition to these aspects, the first part of the report contains an evaluation of the grounds in the law of treaties for unilaterally denouncing a treaty and the applicability of those grounds to the treaties concerning the demilitarisation and neutralisation of Åland. The second part of the report focuses on international law issues pertaining to the Russian Consulate in Mariehamn, discussing first the grounds in the law of treaties for denouncing or suspending the Article concerning the Consulate in the bilateral treaty between Finland and Russia. In this context, particular attention is paid to the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, Article 62 (a fundamental change of circumstances) and Article 60 (a material breach of a treaty). Moreover, the second part of the report discusses countermeasures under general international law and conditions for closing down the Consulate as a countermeasure.