The justice of preventive war

Download
Author
Stephenson, Henry Alan
Date
2004-09Advisor
Moran, Daniel J.
Second Reader
Ashby, Steven
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
In response to the 9/11 attacks and continuing threats of mass-casualty terrorism, the United States has adopted a new security strategy that emphasizes anticipatory actions including preventive war. Prevention, undertaken in the absence of an act of aggression or an imminent threat, is prohibited by modern conceptions of just war and international law. Many critics of the strategy fear that any legitimization of preventive war would endanger international stability. But an examination of the relevant ethical issues from the perspective of just war doctrine reveals contradictions within a blanket prohibition of preventive war. Preventive "strategic interventions" against illiberal regimes-states that correlate with the threats of terrorism and weapons of mass destruction-parallel humanitarian interventions in that they have an ethical basis in the relationship between human rights and the right of state sovereignty. A widely-accepted minimum standard of human rights, incorporated into new international institutions and/or an explicit revision of the definition of just war, could serve as an ethical boundary for both preventive wars and humanitarian interventions. The formal qualification of prevention and its merger with humanitarian goals could bring enhanced international legitimacy and support to preventive actions by the United States and its allies.
Rights
This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.Collections
Related items
Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.
-
Preventive detention in the war on terror : a plan for a more moderate and sustainable solution
Blum, Stephanie. (Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School, 2008-12);(U) After September 11, 2001, the Bush Administration decided to detain certain individuals suspected of being members or agents of al Qaeda or the Taliban as enemy combatants and hold them indefinitely and incommunicado ... -
The necessary evil of preventive detention: a plan for a more moderate and sustainable solution
Blum, Stephanie J.D. (Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School, 2008); NPS-NS-08-003After September 11, 2001, the Bush Administration decided to detain certain individuals suspected of being members or agents of al Qaeda or the Taliban as enemy combatants and hold them indefinitely and incommunicado for ... -
Counterproliferation strategy : the role of preventive war, preventive strikes, and interdiction
Rak, Claire E. (Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School, 2003-09);This thesis analyzes the potential effectiveness of preventive war, preventive strikes, and interdiction as tools for the United States to counter the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Examination of these ...