Dear Friends I would like to pose some legal , historic and political issues that has never been mentioned in various debates and arguments regarding " Responsibility to Protect " a doctrine alleged by USA to militarily and unilaterally intervene in Syria 1- The R2P doctrine or principle اhas been raised and acknowledged in the fora of the UN since 2001 and in particular UNSC and UNGA . 2- It was Libya in 2011 when the R2P was relied upon under the 2 resolutions 1970 and 1973 for the first and only time . 3-I confirm that the UN SC mandate is a prerequisite for any such a unilateral or collective use of force to protect unarmed civilians who suffer grave violations such as genocide , war crimes , crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing . You can refer to the authorization from UN to NATO in 1994 and 1995 to bombard militia and forces of Serbs in Bosnia in this regard 4- All criteria of R2P that were mentioned by the celebrate authors are correct and appropriate but the first and indefensible factor to adopt the doctrine is a UN mandate ( Resolution issued by SC ) Otherwise , we will face a chaotic world without supranational constraints . 5- It is true that in Kozovo there was not a mandate from the UNSC but later on the 10th June 1997 after the cessation of the 79 day-NATO air strike , the SC authorized the military operations of the NATO in Kozovo ( Res 1244 ) Federal Russia did not veto , but took part in the KFOR peacekeeping operation in Kozovo by a mechanized battalion under the command and flag of the NATO in a historic event since the establishment of NATO in 1949 . It was not only Realpolitik that made Russia did not veto but it was also world public opinion which overwhelmingly supported the intervention ( It was not R2P ) , however USA does not have such moral support , though it is not a prerequisite . 5- It was the USA which drafted both of the 2 Charters in 1945 and 1949 the UN and the NATO which provides the same wording ( believe or not ) in the preamble and article one of the 2 Charters that prohibits resorting to force in order to settle international disputes and adopt peaceful means to settle disputes 6- It was also the USA which launched a robust campaign in the UNSC in 1979 to make it adopts a resolution condemning Vietnam for its military intervention in Cambodia in January 1979 The Vietnamese armed forces undoubtedly intervened to get rid of the Pol Bot Gang which committed genocid and ethnic cleansing against the innocent people from 1975 till 1979 . Vietnamese forces did not have authorization from SC either did not notify the council about its operations there . 7- The resolution adopted hours ago by the House of Commons is a precedence and a remarkable shift in UK policies since 7th December 1941 when USA officially declared war against the Axis after the Japanese fleet shelled Ber harbor On that night Churchill said , now London can enjoy a comfortable sleep and afterwards UK pursued and tailed USA interventionism policies in all USA military intervention in Africa , Europe and Asia . 8- The lasting dilemma of contradiction between pragmatism and humanitism must be worked out for the sake of victims of grave violations of human rights . Best wishes Ayman Salama Professor of International Law Former Liaison Officer of NATO in the Balkans in 1997 -1998
Posted on: Fri, 30 Aug 2013 01:07:39 +0000
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