territory. Each has its own laws. Each of  the islands is what we call 'sovereign'.

領土。每個人都有自己的法律。每個島嶼都是我們所說的 "主權"。

So what if one island wants to… trade  with another? Or send a diplomat? Or fish  

那麼，如果一個島嶼想要......與另一個島嶼進行貿易呢？或者派遣外交官？或者捕魚

in the sea near another? Whose law do they use?

在海里靠近另一個人？他們使用誰的法律？

Well, this is where international law comes in.

嗯，這就是國際法的作用。

We can think of it as a set of  bridges connecting the islands.

我們可以把它看作是一組連接各島嶼的橋樑。

They provide a framework  that everyone has agreed to.  

它們提供了一個大家都同意的框架。

So things can happen smoothly. Most of the time. 

所以事情可以順利地發生。大多數時候。

And there's another thing. Some  

還有一件事。一些

problems aren't just between individual  islands – they affect all of them.

問題不僅僅是個別島嶼之間的問題--它們影響到所有的島嶼。

International law comes in here too – whether it's  drafting an agreement on human rights together.

國際法也出現在這裡--無論是一起起草人權協議。

Or agreeing a plan to fight climate change.

或者商定一個應對氣候變化的計劃。