Bridging the Ends and Means of the Responsibility to Protect: An Opportunity for U.S. Leadership

Abstract

This paper examines the merits of the concept of the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) from conceptualization through contemporary domestic and international efforts at operationalization. R2P's objective is to provide effective ways to address the recurrent problem of mass atrocities through an emphasis on prevention and a modern interpretation of sovereignty, which includes the responsibility of governments to protect their populations from internal and external threats of all types. R2P was conceptualized in 2001 by the International Convention on Intervention and State Sovereignty (ICISS), whose objective is to establish effective policies to prevent or stop mass crimes against civilians. It expanded international responsibility from reaction to mass atrocities to include prevention and post-conflict rebuilding. In addition to traditional justification for intervention, it also included all threats to a population, including disease, famine, and natural disasters. The United Nations formally adopted the definition of R2P in 2005 and embraced the international responsibility of prevention, but limited the types of threats to which it applies to those of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity. More recently, the administration of President Barak Obama made significant strides in the development of R2P policy through its inclusion in the National Security Strategy in 2008 and the 2011 release of Presidential Study Directive 10. This topic is explored through a survey of current international and domestic efforts to balance the ends, ways, and means of R2P while simultaneously trying to avert potential mass atrocities in Libya and Syria. It is followed by a comparative discussion of the United Nations and U.S. approaches to implementing R2P.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 2012
Accession Number
ADA562162

Entities

People

  • Ivan G. Carlson

Organizations

  • National Defense University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Employment
  • Governments
  • Instructors
  • Intergovernmental Organizations
  • International Law
  • International Organizations
  • International Relations
  • Military Science
  • National Politics
  • National Security
  • Personnel Management
  • Political Systems
  • Students
  • Training
  • Treaties
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Joint Military Operations and Doctrine.
  • Military and Counterinsurgency Studies.
  • Political Violence and Terrorism Studies.