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When May States Use Force?
The US-led airstrikes against Syrian installations involved in that country’s chemical-weapons program have once again raised the question of when it is appropriate to take military action against a sovereign state. It turns out that there is less disagreement than one might assume.
https://prosyn.org/sQMWgQa
MELBOURNE – The missile strikes against Syrian military installations that the United States, the United Kingdom, and France recently carried out, in response to the government’s apparent use of chemical weapons in the rebel-held town of Douma, have once again raised the question of when the use of force against a sovereign state is permissible. The contexts vary. Countries might use force to wage a defensive war, to exercise the “responsibility to protect” against genocide or other crimes against humanity, or to prevent the acquisition or use of weapons of mass destruction. But the question is always the same: When is it right to fight?