A/HRC/13/34 restoration, as demonstrated in the countries of the former Soviet Union and Yugoslavia (A/HRC/7/23, para. 65). 50. As indicated above, article 15 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights provides the general rule on the right to a nationality that applies in all circumstances. This general principle was reiterated by the International Law Commission in article 1 of the draft articles on nationality of natural persons, stating that the principle contained in article 1 was “a key provision, the very foundation of the present draft articles”.10 While recognizing the potential challenges of applying this principle to cases where it is difficult to determine the State in relation to which a person would be entitled to present a claim for nationality, the Commission concluded that, in cases of State succession, it was always possible to identify such a State, because it was either the successor State (or one of the successor States when there were more than one) of the predecessor State. Article 5 of the draft articles further provides that, subject to other provisions of the draft articles, persons concerned having their habitual residence in the territory affected by the succession of States are presumed to acquire the nationality of the successor State. 51. The draft articles on nationality of natural persons also included two fundamental principles concerning the right to a nationality. Article 15 embodies the general principle of non-discrimination. In its commentary, the International Law Commission clarified that this provision sought to avoid discriminatory treatment with regard to matters of nationality in the context of State succession on any ground, which was an all encompassing formula to avoid the risk of any a contrario interpretation.11 On the other hand, article 16 contains two elements: the first is the prohibition of the arbitrary withdrawal by the predecessor State of the nationality from persons concerned who were entitled to retain their nationality following the succession of States and of the arbitrary refusal by the successor State to attribute its nationality to persons concerned who were entitled to acquire such nationality; the second is the prohibition of the arbitrary denial of a person’s right of option, which is an expression of the right of a person to change his or her nationality in the context of a succession of States. 52. These two normative provisions — the principle of non-discrimination and the prohibition of arbitrary deprivation of nationality in the context of State succession — should be also read in conjunction with the right of children born in the territory of one of the successor States to acquire the nationality of that State (art. 13). This provision reflects the obligation enshrined in articles 7 and 8 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, namely the right of the child to acquire a nationality at birth and to preserve it without unlawful interference. 53. In article 11 of the draft articles on nationality of natural persons, the International Law Commission also provided the right of persons who have the option to claim the nationality of more than one State to be able to freely decide which of these nationalities would be retained in situations of State succession. According to the Commission, “the respect for the will of the individual is a consideration which, with the development of human rights law, has become paramount”. The Commission noted in particular that “a right of option has a role to play, in particular, in resolving problems of attribution of nationality to persons concerned falling within an area of overlapping jurisdictions of States concerned”.12 10 11 12 GE.09-17512 Ibid., p. 25. Ibid., p. 37. Ibid., p. 34. 13