    Hence the two most effective and authoritative institutions in the international system do not impose duties at all in many cases, they exercise a moral power to alter the moral situation of states but the alteration is from duty to permission in many cases.  To be sure, they do this against the background of treaties and agreements that have a kind of legislative force and that do purport to impose genuine duties.  And there are duties not to interfere with the authorized activity, but the point remains that the primary exercise is one of changing duties to permissions.  This may confirm Applebaum's idea that authority need not impose duties.