Treaty Ratification: Domestic Politics Meets International Law
How different countries approve international treaties — from the US Senate's two-thirds requirement to parliamentary fast-track procedures.
The Ratification Gap
A government negotiates and signs a treaty. Then it must go home and persuade its own legislature to approve it. This is where many treaties die. The US Senate must approve treaties by a two-thirds vote — 67 senators. This supermajority requirement has killed numerous agreements, from the Treaty of Versailles in 1919 to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty in 1999.
Other countries set different thresholds. In the UK, the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010 gives Parliament 21 sitting days to object to a treaty; if it does not, the government can proceed. In Germany, treaties that affect domestic law require a parliamentary vote with a simple majority. In France, some treaties require a parliamentary vote while others can be approved by the President alone, depending on the subject matter. These differences mean that the same treaty can sail through one country's legislature and stall for years in another's.