Protecting the Natural Environment in Armed Conflict

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Maurer
Keyword(s):  
Natural Environment ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Environmental Consequences ◽  
Climate Risks ◽  
Direct And Indirect Impacts ◽  
Urban And Rural Areas ◽  
Indirect Impacts

Armed conflicts have direct and indirect impacts on the natural environment, and climate risks now magnify this harm for dependent communities. Too often, the natural environment is directly attacked or suffers incidental damage as a result of the use of certain methods or means of warfare. It is also at risk from damage and destruction to the built environment, across urban and rural areas. To reduce this harm, parties to armed conflict can integrate legal protections for the environment into their armed forces’ doctrine to reduce damage as they fight. Humanitarians in turn must commit sufficient resources and expertise to respond to the needs of those coping with the environmental consequences of conflict, and limit their own climate and environmental footprint. In order to address this challenge, in November 2020 the ICRC released the Guidelines on the Protection of the Natural Environment in Armed Conflict which aim to contribute in a practical way to promoting respect for and protection of this precious asset during armed conflicts.

Protecting the Natural Environment in Armed Conflict

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-4
Author(s):  
Peter Maurer
Keyword(s):  
Natural Environment ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Environmental Consequences ◽  
Climate Risks ◽  
Industrial Complexes ◽  
Urban And Rural Areas ◽  
Indirect Impacts

Armed conflicts have direct and indirect impacts on the natural environment, and climate risks now magnify this harm for dependent communities. Too often, the natural environment is directly attacked or suffers incidental damage as a result of the use of certain methods or means of warfare. It is also at risk from damage and destruction to the built environment–including industrial complexes, combustible storage and processing facilities, factories and plants, agricultural facilities, and waste sites–across urban and rural areas. Parties to armed conflict can integrate legal protections for the environment into their armed forces’ doctrine to reduce damage as they fight. Humanitarians in turn must commit sufficient resources and expertise to respond to the needs of those coping with the environmental consequences of conflict, and limit their own climate and environmental footprint. In order to address this simmering challenge, in November 2020, the ICRC released the Guidelines on the Protection of the Natural Environment in Armed Conflict that aims to contribute in a practical way to promoting respect for and protection of this precious asset especially, during armed conflicts.

Introduction

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Park
Keyword(s):  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Right To Life

The introduction sets out the broad questions to be addressed, namely: do states have right to life obligations during armed conflict; if so, what are these obligations; when do they apply, and in respect of whom; and how can states best ensure compliance with these obligations? The introduction also provides a précis of each chapter and the themes explored therein. Additionally, it makes reference to the fact that UK armed forces doctrine and procedures in respect of recent armed conflicts will be used as examples to explore the issues under consideration in the book. The aim is also to proffer a view on where the current UK procedures do not comply with the state’s right to life obligations and how this can be rectified.

Exploring the “continuous combat function” concept in armed conflicts: Time for an extended application?

2018 ◽  
Vol 100 (907-909) ◽  
pp. 267-285
Author(s):  
Sabrina Henry
Keyword(s):  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Armed Groups ◽  
Function Concept ◽  
Extended Application

AbstractThis paper focuses on the “continuous combat function” concept and proposes to extend its application. First, the article will demonstrate that the continuous combat function concept should be extended to certain members of organized armed groups in cases where those groups do not belong to any of the parties to an international armed conflict and whose actions do not reach the level of intensity required for a separate non-international armed conflict (NIAC) to exist. Secondly, the paper will look at the extension of this concept in order to determine individual membership in State armed forces in the context of a NIAC, while arguing that the notion of “armed forces” should be interpreted differently depending of the nature of the conflict, be it international or non-international.

The Obama Administration and Targeting “War-Sustaining” Objects in Noninternational Armed Conflict

2016 ◽  
Vol 110 (4) ◽  
pp. 663-679 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Goodman
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Second Order ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
President Obama ◽  
Law Of Armed Conflict ◽  
Economic Infrastructure ◽  
Significant Attention

Since September 11, 2001, legal experts have focused significant attention on the lethal targeting of individuals by both the George W. Bush and Obama administrations. An equally significant legacy of the post-9/11 administrations, however, may be the decisions to target specific kinds of objects. Those decisions greatly affect the success of U.S. efforts to win ongoing conflicts, such as the conflict with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). These decisions may also become precedents for military attacks that states consider lawful, whether carried out by cyber or kinetic means, in future armed conflicts.To achieve the goal of destroying ISIL, President Obama embraced what many in the international law community long regarded as off-limits: targeting war-sustaining capabilities, such as the economic infrastructure used to generate revenue for an enemy's armed forces. Although the weight of scholarly opinion has for years maintained that such objects are not legitimate military targets, the existing literature on this topic is highly deficient. Academic discussion has yet to grapple with some of the strongest and clearest evidence in support of the U.S. view on the legality of such targeting decisions. Indeed, intellectual resources may be better spent not on the question of whether such objects are legitimate military targets under the law of armed conflict, but on second-order questions, such as how to apply proportionality analysis and how to identify limiting principles to guard against unintentional slippery slopes. In this article, I discuss the legal pedigree for war-sustaining targeting. I then turn to identify some of the most significant second-order questions and how we might begin to address them.

scholarly journals International Environmental Protection in Armed Conflicts: Traditional Legal Regulation and Interpretation Novelties

Lex Russica ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 84-95
Author(s):  
N. A. Sokolova
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Environmental Protection ◽  
Natural Environment ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Legal Protection ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Wide Range

The paper is devoted to international legal protection of the environment during armed conflicts. The author emphasizes that armed conflicts, both international and non-international, continue to be one of the most serious threats to a healthy environment. An armed conflict taking place in the environment invariably poses a threat to ecosystems.The author summarizes that in international law there are special norms for the protection of natural environment during armed conflicts. At the same time, increasing the level of protection requires a clearer definition of the scope of application of customary law and the further development of treaty rules. While the objectives of protecting the natural environment are linked to the survival and protection of civilians, recognition of environmental protection during armed conflict as such constitutes an important trend. International law calls on States to enter into agreements that provide for additional protection of the natural environment during armed conflicts. The concept of “protecting the natural environment” in international humanitarian law refers to a wide range of obligations that can help protect the natural environment or its parts from damage. A high threshold for potential harm continues to pose the risk that such protection is not fully applicable in practice. There is an obvious tendency to use the potential of the principles of international environmental law when applying the norms of international humanitarian law. Thus, even in cases where the assessment of new means and methods of warfare does not provide scientific certainty with regard to their impact on the natural environment, this does not absolve the parties to the conflict from taking appropriate precautions. It is not enough that there are important rules of international humanitarian law protecting the natural environment during armed conflict; they need to be better disseminated, implemented and enforced, as well as validated and clarified.

scholarly journals ARMED CONFLICT IN THE SOUTH-EAST OF UKRAINE: LEGAL QUALIFI-CATIONS AND CONSEQUENCES

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 394-412
Author(s):  
Petr P. Kremnev
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Legal Analysis ◽  
The South ◽  
Legal Doctrine ◽  
Legal Norms ◽  
Legal Consequences

Unconstitutional change of power in Ukraine as a result of the "Maidan revolution" in February 2014, with the subsequent power grab by Ukrainian radicals of local authorities under nationalist slogans, led to the establishment of control over parts of the territory of Donetsk and Lugansk regions by Donbass militias, and then to the ongoing fighting between the armed formations of the latter with units of the regular armed forces of Ukraine. The purpose of this publication is to establish the form of the armed conflict and its legal consequences from the standpoint of current international law, which has not yet found proper legal analysis and coverage in either domestic or foreign (including Ukrainian) legal doctrinе. In official statements and legislative acts of Ukraine, this conflict is declared as a "state of war with Russia", "aggression of Russia", and the Ukrainian doctrine of international law almost unanimously declares the need to apply to the conflict the norms of international humanitarian law and qualifies it as an international armed conflict. In this publication, on the basis of the analysis of existing international legal norms and legal doctrine, the qualification of existing forms of armed conflicts is carried out: war, international armed conflict, non-international armed conflict, internationalized armed conflict. This examines the legal consequences (or otherwise the obligations of the parties to the conflict) that are caused by each form of such armed conflict, that is concealed and ignored by the Ukrainian side. On the basis of the theoretical and legal analysis of the UN Charter, the relevant provisions of the Geneva conventions on the protection of victims of war of 1949 and Additional protocols I and II of 1977, the author qualifies the situation in the South-East of Ukraine as a non-international armed conflict and the obligation to comply with applicable legal norms by all parties to the conflict. At the same time, the author comes to the conclusion about the insolvency of the claims about the applicability of the rules governing other mentioned forms of armed conflicts.

scholarly journals Impact of Armed Conflicts on the State of Ecological Security

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 32-39
Author(s):  
Adam Paweł Olechowski
Keyword(s):  
Natural Environment ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Environmental Problems ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Ecological Security ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Military Conflicts ◽  
Humanitarian Crises

Abstract Contemporary armed conflicts, although not as global in scope as the two world wars in the 20th century, create serious threats in many dimensions. One of the areas of their influence is the natural environment. In fact every armed conflict, also one that takes place in a relatively small territory, causes a number of negative consequences in the natural environment. These, in turn, may have further consequences. Apart from the damage caused by military operations, accompanying phenomena appear on a large scale. In recent years, a series of armed conflicts in Africa and West Asia resulted in huge migrations of millions of people. In addition to the resulting humanitarian crises, large-scale environmental problems are observed. Thus, it clearly shows that even potentially minor military conflicts can lead to serious disturbances of the natural environment. The author shows the various consequences of armed conflicts for the natural environment over the last half century.

scholarly journals AGRICULTURE’S IMPACT FOR THE ECONOMY: INTER-INDUSTRY LINKAGES AND MULTIPLIER EFFECTS

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giedrė DZEMYDAITĖ
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Output Analysis ◽  
Agriculture Sector ◽  
Multiplier Effects ◽  
Direct And Indirect Impacts ◽  
Indirect Impacts ◽  
Sectoral Linkages ◽  
The Eu

The role of agriculture sector is understood as being vital for economic development and well being of rural areas. Common agriculture policies in the EU and production shocks in agriculture sector reflect in production changes that causes direct and indirect effects for other industries development in the region, as well as, households’ income. This paper aimed to evaluate agriculture sector’s direct and indirect impacts for the economy by analyzing sectoral linkages and multiplier effects. Input-output analysis techniques were applied. Both output and income multipliers were evaluated. This paper supports the idea that agriculture sectors were more multiplying the economy than other sectors on average. This sector remains important catalyst of the economy, especially while taking into account development challenges in rural areas.

Part IV The Right to Reparation/Guarantees of Non-Recurrence, B Guarantees of Non-Recurrence of Violations, Principle 37 Disbandment of Parastatal Armed Forces/Demobilization and Social Reintegration of Children

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Duthie Roger ◽  
Mayer-Rieckh Alexander
Keyword(s):  
Transitional Justice ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Historical Background ◽  
Armed Groups ◽  
Social Reintegration ◽  
Criminal Violence ◽  
The Right

Principle 37 focuses on the disbandment of parastatal armed forces and the demobilization and social reintegration of children involved in armed conflicts. It articulates measures designed to prevent the transformation of conflict violence to criminal violence through the dismantling and reintegration of all armed groups engaged in abuses, and outlines comprehensive responses to the injustices experienced by children during armed conflict. This chapter first provides a contextual and historical background on Principle 37 before discussing its theoretical framework and practice. It then examines the importance of reintegration processes and how they can be affected by transitional justice measures, along with their implications for former child combatants. It also highlights the relevance of measures for dealing with unofficial armed groups from an impunity standpoint, as well as the efforts of disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) programs to address them.

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