TREI GÂNDITORI ȘI TREI IZVOARE TEORETICE CE AU FONDAT DREPTUL INTERNATIONAL
THREE THINKERS AND THREE THEORETICAL SOURCES THAT LAID THE FOUNDATIONS OF INTERNATIONAL LAW

Summary/Abstract: The theoretical foundations of contemporary international law originate in the political, philosophical, and legal reflections of major European thinkers — Francesco de Vitoria, Hugo Grotius, and Immanuel Kant — whose ideas gradually facilitated the transition from an order grounded in theological authority to one founded on reason and juridical universality. Vitoria, representing the School of Salamanca, articulated the concept of ius gentium as an expression of natural law common to all peoples, affirming the moral equality of nations and legitimizing the application of law in international relations. Grotius, building upon this legacy, developed a rationalist and systematic vision of international law, arguing that it retains its validity even in the absence of a supreme political authority, since it expresses the natural order of human reason. Kant, in turn, transposed these ideas into the moral and normative sphere, envisioning a model of “perpetual peace” grounded in republican freedom, mutual respect among states, and the institutionalization of cosmopolitan law. Collectively, the contributions of these three thinkers established a durable conceptual framework in which the principles of rationality, morality, and universality became constitutive elements of modern international law, oriented toward the preservation of peace and the promotion of cooperation among nations.

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