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Smoke billows from a city neighborhood of tan, brown buildings.

Assessing Jus Ad Bellum Proportionality: A Factored Approach

Nine factors, considered in their totality, would provide a more nuanced understanding of jus ad bellum proportionality and assist States in identifying specific concerns with…
A view of a deserted migrants' camp on the Belarusian-Polish border in the Grodno region on November 18, 2021. (Photo by LEONID SHCHEGLOV/BELTA/AFP via Getty Images)

On Empathy, Scholarship, and Political Action: A Response to Lahmann

The situation on Belarus's borders sparks a debate on the appropriate path for international legal scholars. The latest from Aurel Sari and Ben Hudson.
Image: Polish law enforcement officers stand at the frontier at the Bruzgi-Kuznica border crossing where migrants gathered aiming to cross into Poland, in the Grodno region on November 16, 2021. (Photo by MAXIM GUCHEK/BELTA/AFP via Getty Images)

Stirring Trouble at the Border: Is Belarus in Violation of International Law? – Part 1

Belarus has been criticized for using desperate migrants to pressure EU borders. But is it breaking international law by doing so?
The sky is hazy at the Syrian border city of Albu Kamal in the Deir Ezzor region on November 12, 2018.

Biden’s First Strike and the International Law of Self-Defense

The U.S. airstrikes taken on Friday in Syria almost certainly violated international law, for two basic reasons.
The guided-missile cruiser USS Vella Gulf (CG 72) fires a close-in weapons system during a live-fire exercise, April 27, 2020.

On Iranian Gunboats: Beware Conflating American and Mainstream Views of the Law

In a recent essay in Just Security entitled “Iranian Gunboat Harassment and the Rules of Engagement,” Michael Schmitt and Durward Johnson explore important questions raised…
Venezuela's National Assembly head Juan Guaido waves to the crowd during a mass opposition rally against leader Nicolas Maduro in which he declared himself the country's "acting president", on the anniversary of a 1958 uprising that overthrew military dictatorship, in Caracas on January 23, 2019.

The Rio Treaty: Paving the Way for Military Intervention in Venezuela?

Renewed focus on the presence of terrorist groups in Venezuela, and the Maduro regime’s involvement with such groups, suggest that the ground is being paved for a potential military…
The Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS John S. McCain (DDG 56), the Philippine navy frigate BRP Gregaorio del Pilar (PF-15) and the Philippine navy frigate BRP Ramon Alcaraz (PF-16) steam in formation during Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) Philippines 2014.

The US-Philippines Defense Treaty and the Pompeo Doctrine on South China Sea

A major statement by Sec. Mike Pompeo on U.S. coming to the military defense of the Philippines against China. A legal expert explains the implications.

Cyber Operations and the U.S. Definition of “Armed Attack”

[Ed. Note: Based on Goodman's remarks at U.S. Cyber Command’s Annual Legal Conference.]

A widely accepted view of the UN Charter is that a State can use force…

Japan’s Definition of Armed Attack and ‘Bloody Nose’ Strikes Against North Korea

There has been an important discussion in the last couple of weeks over the legality of possible limited strikes, part of a so-called “bloody nose” strategy, by the United…
Just Security

Was the Cyber Attack on a Dam in New York an Armed Attack?

Concerns about the vulnerability of infrastructure to cyber attacks were highlighted in two recent news articles. Last month, the Wall Street Journal reported that in 2013, Iranian…

International Law and Cyber Attacks: Sony v. North Korea

It could only happen in the movies. A major Hollywood company produces a film starring well-known comedic actors which involves the tongue-in-cheek assassination of the leader…
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