This research paper examines the existential threat of climate change-induced sea-level rise to the legal statehood and sovereignty of Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Grounded in the Westphalian paradigm, traditional international law binds sovereign authority to physical territory under the Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States. However, the physical submersion of coastal areas necessitates a shift toward legal de-territorialization. Drawing upon historical anomalies such as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, recent landmark climate advisory opinions from the International Court of Justice and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, and innovative Pacific statecraft, this paper analyses the emerging presumption of state continuity. It argues that public international law is transitioning to ward a functional, population-centric model of continuous sovereignty to prevent climatic statelessness and safeguard maritime and human security.
RAHUL YADAV (2026) studied this question.