ABSTRACT
Traditionally, territory has been the source of conflicts between states. That is the primary reason the specific norms designed to regulate issues related to territory are considered the building blocks of international law. Generally, ‘territory’ in international law means any area of the earth and outer space which may be the source for either sovereignty or sovereign rights for particular subjects of international law or is ordered by the international regime. At the same time, in defining a territory, international law divides the territories based on either (1) the geographical criterion or (2) the legal criterion. Generally, the title to a territory is acquired either by claiming land not previously owned by anyone (terra nullius – a territory belonging to no one) or through the transfer of title from one subject to another. When the title is acquired according to the first method, it is called an original title, while in the second case, it is called a derivative title.
