Verso la codificazione dell’obbligo di riduzione del rischio di disastri nel diritto internazionale: stato dell’arte, sfide e alcune proposte

TOWARDS CODIFYING THE DUTY TO REDUCE DISASTER RISK IN INTERNATIONAL LAW: CURRENT FRAMEWORK, CHALLENGES, AND PROPOSALS On 4 December 2024, the United Nations General Assembly decided to elaborate and conclude, by the end of 2027, a legally binding instrument on the protection of persons in the event of disasters. The draft articles adopted by the International Law Commission (ILC) in 2016 on the same topic will serve as the basis for the negotiations. Although the ILC’s work primarily focused on disaster response – particularly on the external assistance to be provided to a State affected by a disaster – it also included a disaster risk reduction (DRR) component, albeit not fully developed or integrated. This contribution argues that the future treaty should enshrine a clear and comprehensive obligation to reduce disaster risk. To this end, it first reviews the current state of DRR in international law and then advances specific proposals on how to amend the ILC text in order to fully integrate DRR into the forthcoming convention.