Law Commons^™

Chapter 11: Treatment Of Detained Persons

International Law Studies

The Commander’s Handbook on the Law of Naval Operations is used in the United States and throughout the world as a restatement of U.S. doctrinal law positions on matters affecting the operations of the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Marine Corps, and the U.S. Coast Guard. Judge advocates and legal advisers have occasion to conduct deeper research to identify the context and source of the rules reflected in the Commander’s Handbook. Responding to this need, an Annotated Supplement to The Commander’s Handbook was produced in 1997 and published as volume 73 of International Law Studies. In the intervening decades, …

Chapter 12: Deception During Armed Conflict

International Law Studies

The Commander’s Handbook on the Law of Naval Operations is used in the United States and throughout the world as a restatement of U.S. doctrinal law positions on matters affecting the operations of the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Marine Corps, and the U.S. Coast Guard. Judge advocates and legal advisers have occasion to conduct deeper research to identify the context and source of the rules reflected in the Commander’s Handbook. Responding to this need, an Annotated Supplement to The Commander’s Handbook was produced in 1997 and published as volume 73 of International Law Studies. In the intervening decades, …

Awakening The Law Of Contraband In The Russia-Ukraine Conflict, Martin Fink

International Law Studies

Following the collapse of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, both Russia and Ukraine announced measures against shipping that may have introduced counter-contraband operations into the maritime dimension of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The law of contraband, which is at the heart of the law of naval warfare, regulates such operations. The law of contraband has, however, not been often used in current conflicts and some of its details are not crystalized as generally accepted law. Awakening this instrument in the current conflict brings questions for both belligerents and non-State parties, some of whom have adopted a position of qualified neutrality that …

The Newport Manual On The Law Of Naval Warfare, James Kraska, Raul "Pete" Pedrozo, David Letts, Wolff Heintschel Von Heinegg, Rob Mclaughlin, James Farrant, Yurika Ishii, Gurpreet S. Khurana, Koki Sato

International Law Studies

The Newport Manual on the Law of Naval Warfare is the first effort to restate the law of naval warfare as a purely lex lata exercise since 1955. It is designed to provide a practical guide for commanders and seafarers, lawyers and officials, and educators and students. In doing so, the Manual also factors in the developments in warfighting technologies in recent decades, which have significantly influenced the nature of war at sea.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict: The War At Sea, Raul (Pete) Pedrozo

International Law Studies

Although much has been written about the Russia-Ukraine conflict, most writings have focused on land warfare. This article explores the conflict at sea and a host of legal issues arising from that aspect of the conflict. The article begins with a discussion of a series of events at sea that preceded the Russian invasion in 2022, including the Kerch Strait incidents and interference with freedom of navigation in the Black Sea. It then discusses multiple post-invasion legal issues involving the war at sea, including access to the Black Sea, maritime exclusion zones, naval mines, naval bombardment, unmanned maritime systems, targeting …

Neutral State Access To Ukraine’S Food Exports, James Kraska

International Law Studies

This article originally appeared in Articles of War, the online publication of the Lieber Institute at the U.S. Military Academy, May 18, 2022, https://lieber.westpoint.edu/neutral-state-access-ukraines-food-exports/.

The Attack On The Vasily Bekh And Targeting Logistics Ships, James Kraska

International Law Studies

This article originally appeared in Articles of War, the online publication of the Lieber Institute at the U.S. Military Academy, July 11, 2022, https://lieber.westpoint.edu/attack-vasily-bekh-targeting-logistics-ships/.

Booty, Bounty, Blockade, And Prize: Time To Reevaluate The Law, Andrew Clapham

International Law Studies

This article considers the so-called belligerent rights of States in times of war. In particular it focuses on booty of war, blockade, and the capture of merchant ships and their cargo. It is suggested that, while the rules may not often be applied today, they nevertheless continue to exert a certain influence, contributing to confusion about the boundaries of the legitimate use of force and a blurring of the distinction between military objectives and civilian objects.

Considering that the UN Charter has outlawed the use of force, the article also questions why such rules concerning capture should continue to have …

China’S Container Missile Deployments Could Violate The Law Of Naval Warfare, Raul (Pete) Pedrozo

International Law Studies

China is reportedly developing long-range cruise missiles that can be fired from standard shipping containers loaded on merchant vessels. China is also converting heavy-lift civilian ships and roll-on roll-off (RORO) ferries to serve as de facto amphibious assault ships to support People’s Liberation Army (PLA) amphibious operations. While none of these activities are illegal per se, they do raise potential concerns under the law of naval warfare. Only warships can engage in offensive belligerent rights during an international armed conflict. Using merchant vessels to engage in belligerent rights would violate international law unless China first converts the vessels into warships …

Professor Howard S. Levie: In Memoriam, Yoram Dinstein

International Law Studies

Professor Howard S. Levie: In Memoriam

Legal Advisers In The Field During Armed Conflict, Yoram Dinstein

International Law Studies

Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 requires that legal advisers be made available to military commanders, particularly during hostilities. This treaty stipulation was quite innovative in 1977, but it has achieved widespread implementation, even among non-Contracting Parties. It is noteworthy that the United States—which objects to numerous provisions of Additional Protocol I—does not dissent from the article requiring legal advisers. A study of the practice of States, made by the International Committee of the Red Cross, confirms that the norm requiring that legal advisers be made available to advise military commanders in time of armed conflict currently …

Legal Reviews Of War Algorithms, Tobias Vestner, Altea Rossi

International Law Studies

States and scholars recognize legal reviews of weapons, means or methods of warfare as an essential tool to ensure the legality of military applications of artificial intelligence (AI). Yet, are existing practices fit for this task? This article identifies necessary adaptations to current practices. For AI-enabled systems that are used in relation to targeting, legal reviews need to assess the systems’ compliance with additional rules of international law, in particular targeting law under international humanitarian law (IHL). This article discusses the procedural ramifications thereof. The article further finds that AI systems’ predictability problem needs to be addressed by the technical …

Ukraine V. The Russian Federation: Navigating Conflict Over Sovereignty Under Unclos, NilüFer Oral

International Law Studies

Following Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, or according to Russia, its accession following a referendum, Ukraine brought several international cases against the Russian Federation, including two cases under Annex VII of UNCLOS: The Dispute Concerning Coastal State Rights in the Black Sea, Sea of Azov, and Kerch Strait in 2016 and The Detention of Three Ukrainian Naval Vessels in 2019. At the center of these disputes is the conflict between Ukraine and Russia over sovereignty of Crimea. Russia contested jurisdiction in all cases invoking different exceptions under UNCLOS, including the argument that the dispute concerns sovereignty over Crimea and …

Encirclement, Deprivation, And Humanity: Revising The San Remo Manual Provisions On Blockade, Tom Dannenbaum

International Law Studies

Among the most pernicious trends in contemporary armed conflict is the return of mass starvation in war, in some cases as its primary source of human suffering. This has prompted a renewed focus on the relevant rules of international humanitarian law (IHL). On some issues, there is relative consensus. On the issue of deprivation by encirclement, however, there is confusion.

Some have questioned whether the prohibition on the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare applies to encirclements at all, particularly in the naval context. Others have interpreted the prohibition vanishingly narrowly. In contrast to the more extreme of …

The Legal Characterization Of Lethal Autonomous Maritime Systems: Warship, Torpedo, Or Naval Mine?, Hitoshi Nasu, David Letts

International Law Studies

With the rapid advances in autonomous navigation and artificial intelligence technology, naval industries are edging closer to the development of unmanned maritime platforms with lethal autonomous capability—lethal autonomous maritime systems (LAMS). The emergence of LAMS as a sui generis hybrid weapon system will almost certainly generate disagreement on their legal status. Currently, there is no agreement among States as to whether LAMS should legally be characterized as warships or other means of warfare, such as torpedoes and naval mines. This lack of certainty represents a significant deficiency with potential strategic and operational implications if left unresolved. To assist States in …

The Occupation Of Maritime Territory Under International Humanitarian Law, Marco Longobardo

International Law Studies

This article explores whether it is possible to apply the law of occupation beyond land territory, to maritime areas characterized here as “maritime territory.” The article argues that the definition of territory under Article 42 of the 1907 Hague Regulations comprises internal waters, territorial sea, and archipelagic waters, whereas other areas such as the continental shelf, the exclusive economic zone, and high seas fall outside the scope of Article 42. Accordingly, internal waters, the territorial sea, and archipelagic waters may be placed under occupation if a hostile force exercises actual authority over them without valid legal title. The article describes …

Can We Starve The Civilians? Exploring The Dichotomy Between The Traditional Law Of Maritime Blockade And Humanitarian Initiatives, Phillip J. Drew

International Law Studies

The contemporary practice of maritime blockade can trace its origins to the Dutch Placaat of 1564, under which the Dutch Navy enforced the closure of Spanish ports to maritime traffic, both inbound and outbound. Although originally designed to stop all military reinforcements from reaching an area, in the ensuing 450 years, blockade has developed into a method of warfare whose effects are primarily economic. As a result of the urbanization of much of the world’s population over the past 200 years, many States have become heavily reliant on imported foodstuffs and commodities, most of which moves by sea. When those …

Belligerent Obligations Under Article 18(1) Of The Second Geneva Convention: The Impact Of Sovereign Immunity, Booty Of War, And The Obligation To Respect And Protect War Graves, Wolff Heintschel Von Heinegg

International Law Studies

Article 18(1) of the Second Geneva Convention requires parties to an international armed conflict, “after each engagement” and “without delay,” to “take all possible measures to search for and collect the wounded and sick, to protect them against pillage and ill-treatment, to ensure their adequate care, and to search for the dead and prevent their being despoiled.” This article focuses on the latter obligation: the duty to search for and collect the dead. It assesses this obligation in light of the International Committee of the Red Cross 2017 Commentary on the Second Geneva Convention, the first such commentary completed by …

The Updated Icrc Commentary On The Second Geneva Convention: Demystifying The Law Of Armed Conflict At Sea, Bruno Demeyere, Jean-Marie Henckaerts, Heleen Hiemstra, Ellen Nohle

International Law Studies

Since their publication in the 1950s and 1980s respectively, the Commentaries on the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols of 1977 have become a major reference for the application and interpretation of those treaties. The International Committee of the Red Cross, together with a team of renowned experts, is currently updating these Commentaries in order to document developments and provide up-to-date interpretations of the treaty texts. Following a brief overview of the methodology and process of the update as well as a historical background to the Second Geneva Convention, this article addresses the scope of applicability of the …

Duty To Render Assistance To Mariners In Distress During Armed Conflict At Sea: A U.S. Perspective, Raul (Pete) Pedrozo

International Law Studies

In 2017, the International Committee of the Red Cross published an updated Commentary on the Second Geneva Convention. One question left unanswered by the new Commentary is the relationship between international humanitarian law and other international treaties applicable to the maritime domain, such as the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and treaties adopted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The Second Geneva Convention establishes a legal framework for the humane treatment and protection of victims of armed conflict at sea—the wounded, sick and shipwrecked. There are circumstances, however, in which the belligerents do not have the …

Combat Losses Of Nuclear-Powered Warships: Contamination, Collateral Damage And The Law, Akira Mayama

International Law Studies

There have been non-combat losses of nuclear-powered warships during sea trials and peacetime patrol missions. Nuclear contamination is spreading from some of these sinking sites. It is also conceivable that combat losses of nuclear-powered warships could cause contamination of civilians, civilian objects and the natural environment. If such combat losses occur at sea, both belligerent and neutral States will have to deal with a difficult question: to what extent and by who can harm resulting from such contamination be compensated for payment of damages. This article examines legal issues stemming from prospective combat losses of nuclear-powered warships from the perspectives …

Exclusion Zones In The Law Of Armed Conflict At Sea: Evolution In Law And Practice, Sandesh Sivakumaran

International Law Studies

This article analyses the changes in the law and practice of exclusion zones in the law of armed conflict at sea. It identifies three principal phases. First, it explores the exclusion zones of the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905, which were modest in size and defensive in character. Second, it turns to the exclusion zones of the First World War and several subsequent conflicts. The exclusion zones of this period were fundamentally different to those of the Russo-Japanese war: if a vessel was within an exclusion zone, it was deemed susceptible to attack. The article then turns to the third phase …

Regulation-Tolerant Weapons, Regulation-Resistant Weapons And The Law Of War, Sean Watts

International Law Studies

The historical record of international weapons law reveals both regulation-tolerant weapons and regulation-resistant weapons, identifiable by a number of criteria, including effectiveness, novelty, deployment, medical compatibility, disruptiveness and notoriety. This article identifies these criteria both to explain and inform existing weapons law, and also to facilitate efforts to identify weapons and emerging technology that may prove susceptible to future law of war regulation. By charting both the history and methodology of weapons law with a view toward identifying forces and influences that have made some weapons susceptible to international regulation and made others resistant, this article offers a starting point …

Emerging Technology And Perfidy In Armed Conflict, Ian Henderson, Jordan Den Dulk, Angeline Lewis

International Law Studies

The rule against perfidy in armed conflict—one of the last echoes of honor and social order of war—is threatened by emerging technologies. Specifically, the employment of emerging technologies has muddied the already thin and grey line between acts which contravene the honor of warfare and legitimate ruses of war. In this article, the authors analyze perfidy, treachery and ruses of war as key concepts of international humanitarian law and consider their application to emerging technologies.

The Law Of Naval Warfare And China’S Maritime Militia, James Kraska, Michael Monti

International Law Studies

China operates a vast network of fishing vessels that form a maritime militia equipped and trained to conduct intelligence, communications, and targeting support for the People's Liberation Army Navy. Fishing vessels normally are exempt from capture or attack in the law of naval warfare unless they are integrated into the naval forces, but distinguishing between legitimate fishing vessels and maritime militia during naval warfare is virtually impossible.

1907 Hague Convention Viii Relative To The Laying Of Automatic Submarine Contact Mines, Steven Haines

International Law Studies

This article places 1907 Hague Convention VIII in its historical context, examines its content, summarizes State practice since 1907 (including during the two World Wars) and discusses the Convention’s relevance to contemporary mine warfare. The Convention has inherent shortcomings, has never been strictly applicable in any war since 1907, and is not strictly relevant to anything other than automatic contact mines (effectively excluding modern influence mines). Despite this—and a paucity of substantial State practice since 1945—the conclusion is that the Convention has influenced the customary law on sea-mines. When that custom was combined with other relevant custom (particularly that pertaining …

The Law Applicable To Naval Mine Warfare In A Non-International Armed Conflict, Rob Mclaughlin

International Law Studies

There are very few instruments and very few cases, which describe how the law in relation to naval mine warfare applies within non-international armed conflict contexts. Additionally, since 1945, there has been relatively limited State practice. Working out what the law applicable to naval mine warfare in NIAC situations might look like today thus requires some recourse to the pre-World War II scheme designed to accommodate and characterize maritime activity by rebels, insurgents, and belligerents in conflict with their State. This article proposes for discussion a set of “rules” that attempt to incorporate and update elements of this customary scheme …

Full Volume 86: The War In Iraq: A Legal Analysis (2010)

International Law Studies

No abstract provided.

Legal Considerations In Relation To Maritime Operations Against Iraq, Neil Brown

International Law Studies

No abstract provided.

Full Volume 82: The Law Of War In The 21st Century: Weaponry And The Use Of Force

International Law Studies

No abstract provided.