Christine Gray - International Law and the Use of Force

FOUNDATIONS OF PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW

General editors: MALCOLM EVANS AND PHOEBE OKOWA

INTERNATIONAL LAW AND THE USE OF FORCE

Third Edition

International Law and
the Use of Force

Third Edition

CHRISTINE GRAY

Great Clarendon Street, Oxford OX2 6DP

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Christine Gray, 2008

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First published 2008

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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Data available

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Gray, Christine D.

International law and the use of force / Christine Gray.3rd ed.

p. cm.(Foundations of public international law)

Includes index.

ISBN13: 9780199239146 (hardback: alk. paper)

ISBN13: 9780199239153 (pbk.: alk. paper) 1. Intervention (International law) 2. Aggression (International law) 3. International police. I. Title.

KZ6374.G73 2008

341.5'84dc22 2008021146

ISBN 978-0-19-923914-6 (hbk)

ISBN 978-0-19-923915-3 (pbk)

1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2

General Editors Preface (3rd Edition)

There is no difficulty in making the case for the appearance of a new edition of Professor Grays seminal study on the use of force in international law: the importance of the subject and the standing of this work, the first edition of which was published in 2000, combine to make that case compelling. This third edition is thoroughly updated and fully revised to take account of the numerous significant developments both in state practice and in the jurisprudence that have taken place since the 2nd edition was published in 2004. These developments include the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 2006, attacks by Turkey on the Kurdish separatist forces (PKK) in northern Iraq, Ethiopias use of force against Somalia and, of course, the on-going ramifications of the US-led invasions in Iraq and Afghanistan. Particular attention is also paid to the conflict in Darfur.

Most importantly, this new edition offers a critical account of the jurisprudence of international tribunals on the use of force. In addition to the decisions of the International Court of Justice, there is also extensive coverage of the decisions of the Eritrea-Ethiopian Claims Commission. Throughout this new edition there are a number of new sections that offer helpful insights into this most important area of Public International Law. In each case Professor Gray has supported her analysis by extensive reference to state practice, including detailed consideration of what states claim for themselves or object to in the context of international litigation. There can be no doubt that this new edition will be greeted with the enthusiasm that it richly deserves and that it will continue to provide a guide to the law which is clear, challenging, and authoritative.

Malcolm D Evans

Phoebe N Okowa

General Editors Preface (1st Edition)

Few topics in international law arouse as much interest as the use of force. Indeed, the very origins of the discipline lie in attempts to wrestle with the question of when force might legitimately be used within the international arena. It shapes and defines the subject. It is, then, most fitting that the first volume to appear in the Foundations of Public International Law Series should address international law and the use of force.

Since 1945 there has been a sustained attempt to place limitations upon unilateral use of force by states and it was envisaged that this would be balanced by the capacity of the UN Security Council to exercise a monopoly over the use of force for the common good of the international community. This, of course, proved to be unattainable for most practical purposes during the Cold War years. The Cold War is over, but other problems have emerged which ensure that the perennial problems surrounding the legality of the use of force will remain the subject of fierce debate and fundamental doctrinal difference.

In keeping with the aims of the series, Christine Gray surveys and explores the current pattern of legal regulation in a manner which combines clarity in presentation with rigour in academic scrutiny. If the issues raised are themselves timeless, the point of departure is clearly contemporary and firmly grounded in recent state practice as well as the pronouncements of the International Court of Justice. Indeed, one of the hallmarks of this work is the way in which state practice is drawn into the jurisprudential debate, producing a synthesis which is both stimulating and satisfying. Difficult questions are posed and challenging conclusions are drawn and this is as it should be. Even if the law in this area were easy to stateand it is notit would still be difficult to apply. It is a sign of the increasing maturity of international law that it is able to face up to this truth whilst continuing to search for a way forward that preserves and enhances the rule of law within the international community. If that means replacing the platitudinous orthodoxies of a previous era with the ever-more complex and perplexing outcomes of evolution and innovation in law and practice, then this a price well worth paying. One does, however, need a reliable guide through the resulting thickets and this volume is offered in the expectation that it will not only fulfil that function with distinction, but will itself mould the manner in which the legal regulation of the use of force is perceived and examined for years to come.

Malcolm D. Evans

Phoebe N. Okowa

Contents