'Armed Attack' and Article 51 of the UN Charter: Evolutions in Customary Law and Practice
by Tom RuysFormat: Hardcover
Pub. Date: 2011-01-17
Publisher(s): Cambridge University Press
Other versions by this Author
List Price: $191.00
Buy New
Usually Ships in 8 - 10 Business Days.
$190.81
Rent Textbook
Select for Price
Used Textbook
We're Sorry
Sold Out
eTextbook
We're Sorry
Not Available
How Marketplace Works:
- This item is offered by an independent seller and not shipped from our warehouse
- Item details like edition and cover design may differ from our description; see seller's comments before ordering.
- Sellers much confirm and ship within two business days; otherwise, the order will be cancelled and refunded.
- Marketplace purchases cannot be returned to eCampus.com. Contact the seller directly for inquiries; if no response within two days, contact customer service.
- Additional shipping costs apply to Marketplace purchases. Review shipping costs at checkout.
Summary
This 2010 book examines to what extent the right of self-defence, as laid down in Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations, permits States to launch military operations against other States. In particular, it focuses on the occurrence of an 'armed attack' - the crucial trigger for the activation of this right. In light of the developments since 9/11, the author analyses relevant physical and verbal customary practice, ranging from the 1974 Definition of Aggression to recent incidents such as the 2001 US intervention in Afghanistan and the 2006 Israeli intervention in Lebanon. The notion of 'armed attack' is examined from a threefold perspective. What acts can be regarded as an 'armed attack'? When can an 'armed attack' be considered to take place? And from whom must an 'armed attack' emanate? By way of conclusion, the different findings are brought together in a draft 'Definition of Armed Attack'.
Author Biography
Dr Tom Ruys is a lawyer with Stibbe, Brussels, and a senior member of the Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies. He also teaches Public International Law as a substitute lecturer at the Catholic University of Leuven.
Table of Contents
| Acknowledgment | p. x |
| Table of abbreviations and abbreviated citations | p. xi |
| Selected case law, legislation and related documents | p. xviii |
| Introduction | p. 1 |
| The methodological debate and the quest for custom | p. 6 |
| Treaty vs. custom | p. 7 |
| The Charter and pre-existing custom | p. 7 |
| The role of custom in treaty interpretation and modification | p. 19 |
| State practice vs. opinio iuris | p. 29 |
| Introduction: the methodological debate | p. 29 |
| The evidentiary weight of words and deeds | p. 31 |
| Observations concerning the density of customary practice | p. 44 |
| Conclusion | p. 51 |
| 'Armed attack' and other conditions of self-defence | p. 53 |
| The 'armed attack' requirement as an integral part of Article 51 UN Charter | p. 53 |
| Self-preservation and self-defence prior to 1945 | p. 53 |
| Article 51 UN Charter - primary means of interpretation | p. 55 |
| The preparatory works of the UN Charter | p. 60 |
| Other conditions of self-defence | p. 68 |
| 'Procedural' obligations | p. 68 |
| Necessity and proportionality | p. 91 |
| The 'armed attack' requirement ratione materiae | p. 126 |
| Armed attack and aggression | p. 127 |
| Two sides of the same coin | p. 127 |
| The negotiations within the Fourth Special Committee on the Question of Defining Aggression (1968-74) | p. 129 |
| Value of the Definition of Aggression | p. 136 |
| General factors determining the existence of an 'armed attack' | p. 139 |
| The 'most grave' forms of the use of force and the de minimis controversy | p. 139 |
| The 'animus aggressionis' and accumulation of events | p. 158 |
| Connecting the dots: the panoply of scenarios and the role of context | p. 175 |
| Small-scale incursions by land, sea or air | p. 184 |
| Attacks against external manifestations of the State | p. 199 |
| Military units and military installations abroad | p. 199 |
| Embassies and diplomatic envoys | p. 201 |
| Civilian aircraft and merchant vessels | p. 204 |
| Protection of nationals | p. 213 |
| The 'armed attack' requirement ratione temporis | p. 250 |
| Anticipatory self-defence: the never-ending saga (1945-2001) | p. 255 |
| The doctrinal debate - a brief appraisal | p. 255 |
| Customary precedents: evidence in concreto | p. 267 |
| Customary evidence in abstracto | p. 294 |
| The Shockwaves of 9/11 | p. 305 |
| The 2002 US National Security Strategy and the intervention in Iraq in 2003 | p. 305 |
| Shifting positions of States and scholars: a defeat of preventive self-defence at the expense of an embrace of pre-emptive self-defence? | p. 318 |
| Exceptions and borderline cases | p. 342 |
| The prospective dimension of the necessity standard | p. 342 |
| Possible exceptions? | p. 343 |
| Interceptive self-defence at the tactical level: on-the-spot reaction | p. 346 |
| The 'armed attack' requirement ratione personae | p. 368 |
| Indirect military aggression in the decolonization era | p. 369 |
| Formulation of the problem | p. 369 |
| The debate on 'indirect aggression' within the Fourth Special Committee on the Question of Defining Aggression | p. 382 |
| State practice | p. 394 |
| Indirect aggression in the wake of the ICJ's Nicaragua case | p. 406 |
| Self-defence against non-State actors in the age of international terrorism and State failure | p. 419 |
| Prelude to 9/11: shifting context, shifting practice? | p. 419 |
| 9/11: awakening to a new security environment | p. 433 |
| Customary practice after 9/11 | p. 447 |
| The response of the International Court of Justice | p. 472 |
| Conclusion: can non-State actors commit 'armed attacks'? | p. 485 |
| What future for the 'armed attack' criterion? | p. 511 |
| The customary boundaries of self-defence | p. 511 |
| A word of caution | p. 511 |
| The correlation between Article 51 UN Charter and other primary or secondary rules, and the 'pre-existing custom' paradigm | p. 514 |
| Preconditions of individual self-defence other than the 'armed attack' requirement | p. 517 |
| Ratione materiae: the basic ingredients of an 'armed attack' | p. 520 |
| The 'armed attack' ratione temporis | p. 524 |
| Ratione personae: attacks by non-State actors and the right of self-defence | p. 528 |
| The slippery slope of self-defence | p. 532 |
| Towards a UNGA 'Definition of Armed Attack'? | p. 535 |
| Resuming an ancient project | p. 535 |
| A blueprint | p. 539 |
| Post-scriptum: strengthening the compliance pull of the Ius ad Bellum | p. 545 |
| Index | p. 551 |
| Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved. |
An electronic version of this book is available through VitalSource.
This book is viewable on PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and most smartphones.
By purchasing, you will be able to view this book online, as well as download it, for the chosen number of days.
Digital License
You are licensing a digital product for a set duration. Durations are set forth in the product description, with "Lifetime" typically meaning five (5) years of online access and permanent download to a supported device. All licenses are non-transferable.
More details can be found here.
A downloadable version of this book is available through the eCampus Reader or compatible Adobe readers.
Applications are available on iOS, Android, PC, Mac, and Windows Mobile platforms.
Please view the compatibility matrix prior to purchase.