In this volume, the third in his trilogy on the philosophical and legal aspects of war and conflict, Larry May locates a normative grounding for the crime of aggression - the only one of the three crimes charged at Nuremberg that is not currently being prosecuted - that is similar to that for crimes against humanity and war crimes. He considers cases from the Nuremberg trials, philosophical debates in the Just War tradition, and more recent debates about the International Criminal Court, as well as the hard cases of humanitarian intervention and terrorist aggression. His thesis refutes the traditional understanding of aggression. At Nuremberg, crimes against humanity charges were only pursued if the defendant also engaged in the crime of aggression. May argues for a reversal of this position, contending that aggression charges should be pursued only if the defendant's acts involve serious human rights violations.
- This is the first full treatment of the crime of aggression
- Combines philosophical and legal arguments with extensive discussion of cases, especially from Nuremberg
- Provides original account of how to understand elements of crime of aggression in international law
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Awards
- Winner of The International Association of Penal Law Book of the Year Award
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Product details
- Date Published: June 2008
- format: Paperback
- isbn: 9780521719155
- length: 368 pages
- dimensions: 226 x 151 x 20 mm
- weight: 0.49kg
- availability: In stock
Table of Contents
Part I. Pacifism and Just Wars:
1. Introduction: between the horrors and the necessity of war
2. Grotius and contingent pacifism
3. International solidarity and the duty to aid
Part II. Rethinking the Normative Ad Bellum Principles:
4. The principle of priority of first strike
5. The principle of just cause
6. The principle of proportionality
Part III. The Precedent of Nuremberg:
7. Custom and the Nuremberg precedent
8. Prosecuting military and political leaders
9. Prosecuting civilians for complicity
Part IV. Conceptualizing the Crime of Aggression:
10. Defining state aggression
11. Act and circumstances in the crime of aggression
12. Individual mens rea and collective liability
Part V. Hard Cases and Concluding Thoughts:
13. Humanitarian interventions
14. Terrorist aggression
15. Defending international criminal trials for aggression.
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Instructors have used or reviewed this title for the following courses
- Political Philosophy or Ethics and Law
- The Ethics of War Post 9/11
- War & Peace
Author
Larry May, Washington University, St Louis
Larry May is professor of philosophy at Washington University in St. Louis and Research Professor of Social Justice, Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics, Charles Sturt and Australian National Universityies. He is the author of numerous books, including The Morality of War; Crimes Against Humanity, which won an honorable mention from the American Society of International Law and best book award from the North American Society for Social Philosophy; and War Crimes and Just War, which won the Frank Chapman Sharp prize for the best book on the philosophy of war from the American Philosophical Association.
Awards
- Winner of The International Association of Penal Law Book of the Year Award