The Ottoman empire, a member of the Concert of Europe, was not the victim of European imperialism in the late nineteenth century, but consciously tried to adapt its governance structures to the context of interimperial rivalry, showing itself as an imperialist and expansionist state. The Ottoman agreement to the terms of the General Act of Berlin was a tool both to resist imperialist pressure and assert itself as also legally entitled to colonies in Africa well beyond Sahara. In this concern, istrumentalizing international law was a particularly daring move for the empire.