International Law and Private Foreign Investment

Abstract

Thank you, Dean Aman, for your generous words of welcome. As you sought to persuade our audience of my virtues, I initially experienced some sense of disbelief and wondered whether you could really be speaking of me. As your description progressed, I began to be persuaded by your advocacy. By the time you had finished, I had so entered into the spirit of the matter that I even began to think that perhaps you were not saying enough. I am delighted to be here-as is my wife. We immensely appreciate the hospitality that is being shown to us by yourself and by this distinguished Law School. My entry into the United States was not free of difficulty. It seemed that I had not matched the excellent administrative work of the Dean's office by securing a visa appropriate to one who was deemed to be coming here to work rather than to enjoy himself. The immigration official threatened to ban my giving this lecture, even to exclude me. I welcomed his proposal saying that I would be glad to forego the lecture and explain to the audience why I could not continue to address it. My response was, alas, entirely counter productive. A visa was immediately granted. The truth is, in fact, that nothing could give me more pleasure, or make me feel more privileged, than to have been afforded the present opportunity to deliver the first of the Earl Snyder lectures on international law in this Law School of which he is an alumnus. My pleasure is the greater because Earl Snyder, with whom I have enjoyed a friendship extending over many years, and his wife Gunhild have been able to make the journey from Washington to be present on this occasion. Dr. Snyder has shown a constant devotion to international law for virtually half a century and the subject is much indebted to him for the varied and generous ways in which he has supported it. I am happy to recall the encouragement that he has constantly given to the Research Centre for International Law at Cambridge. He has endowed a scholarship which