Sokovia Accords

The **Sokovia Accords** are a set of legal documents designed to regulate the activities of enhanced individuals, specifically for those who work for either government agencies such as S.H.I.E.L.D. or for private organizations such as the Avengers. Established by the United Nations and ratified by 117 nations, the accords serve as a "middle point" between the Avengers' desire to secure world peace and the international community's concern over the repercussions of the Avengers' actions.

The Sokovia Accords caused a schism in the Avengers. While Tony Stark supported the Accords due to his role in the Ultron Offensive, Steve Rogers recognized that the government having power over potential missions may be a terrible idea in an emergency and disliked the authoritarian nature of its stipulations, noting that signing the Accords would be "surrendering the right to choose". The schism came to a head when Helmut Zemo framed Bucky Barnes for a terrorist attack that occurred during the signing of the Accords.

Combined with Zemo's exploitation of the schism, the Accords tore the Avengers apart, causing Stark's pro-Accords faction and Rogers' anti-Accords faction to destroy an airport as the former attempted to arrest the latter. The Accords caused the anti-Accords faction and Natasha Romanoff, who had been pro-Accords but betrayed Stark's faction knowing that Rogers would never stand down, to either become fugitives or be placed under house arrest, ruining any chance of coordinated defense.

In 2018, after Tony Stark disappeared in the aftermath of the Attack on Greenwich Village and Vision was attacked, it became clear to James Rhodes that the Accords had seriously weakened the Avengers. After the fugitive Avengers returned to the New Avengers Facility with Vision, Rhodes disobeyed Ross's ordersand helped the fugitives. Ultimately, the dysfunction resulting from the Accords was, at the very least, a necessary contributing factor to the Avengers' first outright failure, as they were unable to prevent the Snap from happening.

Austria, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Kenya, Russia, United Kingdom, United States of America, Wakanda, and 105 other nations. Individual supporters include: Barack Obama, Thaddeus Ross, T'Chaka, T'Challa, Glenn Talbot, Phil Coulson, Ellen Nadeer, Tony Stark, Vision, James Rhodes, Natasha Romanoff, Jeffrey Mace, Elena Rodriguez, Lincoln Campbell, and Daisy Johnson. Opponents of the Accords include: Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, Sam Wilson, Wanda Maximoff, Clint Barton, Scott Lang, Sharon Carter, Natasha Romanoff, Helmut Zemo, Robbie Reyes, Aida, Hank Pym, Hope van Dyne, and Trish Walker.

The currently known regulations established by the Sokovia Accords include:

* Any enhanced individuals who agree to sign must register with the United Nations and provide biometric data such as fingerprints and DNA samples.
	+ Those with secret identities must reveal their legal names and true identities to the United Nations.
	+ Those with innate powers must submit to a power analysis, which will categorize their threat level and determine potential health risks.
	+ Those with innate powers must also wear tracking bracelets at all times.
* Any enhanced individuals who sign are prohibited from taking action in any country other than their own unless they are first given clearance by either that country's government or by a United Nations subcommittee.
	+ Governments are forbidden from deploying enhanced individuals outside of their own national borders unless those individuals are given clearance as described above. The same rule also applies to non-government organizations that operate on a global scale (including S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers).
* Any enhanced individuals who do not sign will not be allowed to take part in any police, military, or espionage activities, or to otherwise participate in any national or international conflict, even in their own country.
	+ As a corollary, they will not be allowed to participate in any active missions undertaken by private or governmental law enforcement/military/intelligence organizations (such as S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers).
* Any enhanced individuals who use their powers to break the law (including those who take part in extralegal vigilante activities), or are otherwise deemed to be a threat to the safety of the general public, may be detained indefinitely without trial.
	+ If an enhanced individual violates the Accords, or obstructs the actions of those enforcing the Accords, they may likewise be arrested and detained indefinitely without trial.
* The use of technology to bestow individuals with innate superhuman capabilities is strictly regulated, as is the use and distribution of highly advanced technology (such as Asgardian and Chitauri weaponry).
	+ The creation of self-aware artificial intelligence is completely prohibited.
* The Avengers will no longer be a private organization and will operate under the supervision of the United Nations.

For the purposes of the Accords, an "enhanced individual" is defined as any person, human or otherwise, with superhuman capabilities. This includes individuals whose powers are an innate function of their biology as well as individuals who utilize the highly advanced technology to grant themselves superhuman capabilities. However, individuals with advanced prostheses do not seem to be considered "enhanced", even if their prostheses give them capabilities beyond those of ordinary humans.

All members of the Avengers are subject to the same conditions as enhanced individuals, even if they are not enhanced themselves: Black Widow was required to sign so she could continue serving on the Avengers due to her previously being deemed a threat to world security by Nick Fury, and Hawkeye was incarcerated on the Raft after violating the Accords.