ATS2640 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Jus Ad Bellum, Just War Theory, Humanitarian Intervention
Document Summary
It should help us control the evil of war: no war should be justified on both sides. It should help us resist patriotic and other enthusiasm for war. It should take into account the tendency of states and politicians to engage in wishful thinking, rationalisation and self-justification. Should as much is possible provide clear answers. Last resort: proper authority, right intention, reasonable chance of success, proportionality, note that a war must meet all of these criteria in order to be justified. Pre-emptive and preventative self-defence: this is attacking another state which has not launched an attack on the grounds that it is about to or that it might, preventative war is much more controversial. Extensions of this justification are controversial because they might legitimate too many wars. To punish aggression: this argument is something of a mixture between the argument from self-defence and the argument from the defence of the international order.
