Necessity, Proportionality and the Use of Force by States (Cambridge Studies in International and Comparative Law)
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: December 27, 2004
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 284
ISBN-13: 9780521837521
Subjects: International Law; War (International law); Legal Reference / Law Profession; Law; Air & Space; International; Law / Air & Space; Necessity (International law); Proportionality in law
First sentence: This work addresses the development and current content of necessity and proportionality in the law on the use of force (ius ad bellum) and the law of armed conflict (ius in bello) or international humanitarian law (IHL).
Description: There has been considerable debate in the international community as to the legality of the forceful actions in Kosovo in 1999, Afghanistan in 2002 and Iraq in 2003 under the United Nations Charter. There has been consensus, however, that the use of force in all these situations had to be both necessary and proportional. Against the background of these recent armed conflicts, this book offers the first comprehensive assessment of the twin requirements of necessity and proportionality as legal restraints on the forceful actions of States. It also provides a much-needed examination of the relationship between proportionality in the law on the use of force and international humanitarian law.