International Law Studies, Volume 88. Edited by Kenneth Watkin and
Andrew J. Norris. Contains papers from the conference:
"Non-International Armed Conflict in the 21st Century" hosted by
the Naval War College on June 21-23, 2011. Examines the legal
issues surrounding non-international armed conflict (NIAC) in the
modern era.
The historic International Law Studies ("Blue Book") series was
initiated by the Naval War College in 1901 to publish essays,
treatises and articles that contribute to the broader understanding
of international law. This, the eighty-eighth (88th) volume of the
"Blue Book" series, is a compilation of scholarly papers and
remarks derived from the proceedings of a conference hosted at the
Naval War College on June 21-23, 2011 entitled "Non-International
Armed Conflict in the 21st Century."
The purpose of the June 2011 International Law Conference was to
examine the legal issues surrounding non-international armed
conflict (NIAC) in the modern era. To this end, renowned
international academics and legal advisers, both military and
civilian, representing military, diplomatic, non-governmental and
academic institutions from the global community, were invited to
the War College to analyze a variety of legal topics related to
NIAC.
Non-international armed conflict is of a fundamentally different
nature. In most cases, States are facing organized groups of
lawbreakers from whom reciprocity cannot be expected. Therefore,
there is often little incentive for States to limit their scope of
action by agreeing to legal norms with which only they will
abide.
Moreover, as the conflict is "internal," the risk of spread is
limited, while the involvement of other States is a matter of their
discretion.
However, the context in which non-international armed conflict
occurs is undergoing transformation. Transnational terrorism has
become a globally pervasive phenomenon, one that the international
community seems increasingly willing to classify as
non-international, at least to the extent it rises to the level of
"armed conflict" as a matter of law. Further, as illustrated by the
conflicts in the Balkans, Afghanistan and the Great Lakes region of
Africa, the likelihood of spillover into neighboring countries is
very real, especially when a conflict is ethnically or religiously
based or when adjacent territory is poorly governed. And the rise
of criminal groups with capabilities equaling those of government
forces, as in Colombia and Mexico, raises the question of whether
the hostilities they engage in qualify as armed conflict.
The International Law Department of the Naval War College, long
noted for exploring new legal challenges in its annual conferences,
accordingly decided that a closer examination of the law governing
non-international armed conflict was opportune. Held in June 201 1,
the resulting conference brought together many of the key legal
practitioners and scholars in the field to consider both the state
of the law and where it might be headed. Certain of the
participants were invited to expand on their presentations in this
volume, the eighty-eighth in the Naval War College's International
Law Studies ("Blue Books") series. It delves into such complicated
topics as the scope of non-international armed conflict, the legal
status of
actors, specific limitations on methods and means of warfare,
detention and enforcement.
The volume also offers several firsthand descriptions of
particular non-international armed conflicts. Hopefully, the
various contributions will assist those tasked with providing legal
advice during future non-international armed conflicts, as well as
make a measurable contribution to the scholarship on the subject.
Appreciation is owed to many who made the conference and this
volume of the "Blue Books" possible.
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