Retorsion (from french: rétorsion, from la, retortus, influenced by

Late Latin Late Latin ( la, Latinitas serior) is the scholarly name for the form of Literary Latin of late antiquity.Roberts (1996), p. 537. English dictionary definitions of Late Latin date this period from the , and continuing into the 7th century in t ...

, 1585–95, ''torsi'', a twisting, wringing it), a term used in

international law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...

, is an act perpetrated by one nation upon another in retaliation for a similar act perpetrated by the other nation. A typical example of retorsion is the use of comparably severe measures against citizens of the foreign nation found within the borders of the retaliating nation after the foreign nation has engaged in similar acts. It is different from a

reprisal A reprisal is a limited and deliberate violation of international law to punish another sovereign state that has already broken them. Since the 1977 Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions (AP 1), reprisals in the laws of war are extreme ...

in that the retorsion is always an action in conformity with international law, though unmistakably an unfriendly one. Examples include

international trade International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories because there is a need or want of goods or services. (see: World economy) In most countries, such trade represents a significant ...

, where disputes within the

World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and ...

are typically tackled in this manner, if dispute settlement does not reach its goal. The term is also used to refer to the least aggressive response to a

cyberattack A cyberattack is any offensive maneuver that targets computer information systems, computer networks, infrastructures, or personal computer devices. An attacker is a person or process that attempts to access data, functions, or other restricte ...

. Retorsion also signifies the act by which an individual returns to his adversary evil for evil.

References

{{Reflist French words and phrases International law French legal terminology pl:Retorsje

See also

References