The document discusses the history and development of international law regarding the use of force. It outlines various treaties and agreements that have shaped this area of law over time, including the UN Charter which prohibits the use of force except in cases of self-defense or when authorized by the UN Security Council. The UN Charter and General Assembly Resolution 2625 provide the current framework that bans the use of aggressive force by states in their international relations.

1. PUBLIC
INTERNATIONAL LAW
Esther Awovi Dzakpasu
LLB, LLM, MBA

2. The use of Force
 The use of force has been a long standing phenomenon in
international relations and has been considered to be
directly linked to the sovereignty of states-the limitless
power wielded by states to use all possible means to guard
and protect their interests.
 The United Nations Charter in article 2(4) controls the use of
force by member states.
 “All members shall refrain in their international relations from
the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or
political independence of any state, or in any other manner

3. The use of Force – History – Initial Agreements
 International law has through customary international laws
provided in the past guidance on how war might be waged and,
to a lesser extent, against whom it might be waged.
 These following treaties beginning in the second half of the 19th
century bear example to its development: the 1856 Paris
Declaration on maritime war, 1864 Geneva Convention on
wounded and sick and the St. Petersburg Declaration of 1868
on explosive projectiles.
 In 1874, at the instigation of Russia, an international
conference was held in Brussels which adopted an

4. The use of Force – History – League of Nations
 It was important as a precursor to the Hague ‘First International
Peace Conference’ of 1899 and the ‘Second International Peace
Conference’ of 1907.
 These Conferences, adopted numerous international
instruments codifying (and sometimes adding to) international
law. The 1907 Conference alone adopted 13 conventions and a
declaration, binding on all states.
 The Covenant of the League of Nations of 1919 provided a
permanent forum where states could negotiate and discuss
differences rather than resorting to war; and placed limitations

5. The use of Force – History - League of Nations
 The League of Nations came into being after the end of World
War One. Its task was simple – to ensure that war never broke
out again.
 Member states agreed to submit serious disputes with one or
more other states to arbitration or judicial settlement or inquiry
by the Council of the League.
 There was to be no resort to war until three months after the
completion of such a process.
 Members also undertook not to go to war with another member
who complied with an arbitral award, a judicial decision or a

6. The use of Force – History - League of Nations
 Members agreed to ‘respect and preserve as against external
aggression, the territorial integrity and political independence of
all Members of the League’.

7. The use of Force – History - General treaty for the
renunciation of war, 1928 (The Kellogg-Briand Pact)
 Signatory states promised not to use war to resolve "disputes or
conflicts of whatever nature or of whatever origin they may be,
which may arise among them".[
 Parties failing to abide by this promise "should be denied of the
benefits furnished by [the] treaty".
It was signed by Germany, France and the United States on 27
August 1928, and by most other nations soon after.
Eleven years later after the Paris signing, World War II had
begun.

8. The use of Force – History - General treaty for the
renunciation of war, 1928 (The Kellogg-Briand Pact)
 Article 1 states:
The High Contracting Parties solemnly declare in the names of
their respective peoples that they condemn recourse to war for the
solution of international controversies, and renounce it, as an
instrument of national policy in their relations with one another.
 Article 2 provides: The High Contracting Parties agree that the
settlement or solution of all disputes or conflicts of whatever
nature or of whatever origin they may be, which may arise
among them, shall never be sought except by pacific means.

9. The use of Force – History - General treaty for the
renunciation of war, 1928 (The Kellogg-Briand Pact)
 It was the first treaty to suggest that recourse to war could be a
breach of international law.
 It was used as an important legal base for the prosecution in
Nuremberg of those held responsible for starting the 2nd World
War.
 Violated frequently, It remained a Pact without enforcement
provisions and it was violated frequently.

10. The use of Force – Un Charter
The Charter of the United Nations was signed on 26 June
1945, in San Francisco, at the conclusion of the United Nations
Conference on International Organization, and came into force
on 24 October 1945.
The Statute of the International Court of Justice is an integral
part of the Charter.
The United Nations is currently made up of 193 Member
States. The mission and work of the United Nations are guided
by the purposes and principles contained in its founding
Charter.

11. The use of Force – Un Charter
Due to the powers vested in its Charter and its unique
international character, the United Nations can take action on
the issues confronting humanity in the 21st century.
These include peace and security, climate change, sustainable
development, human rights, disarmament, terrorism,
humanitarian and health emergencies, gender equality,
governance, food production, and more.
The UN also provides a forum for its members to express their
views in the General Assembly, the Security Council, the
Economic and Social Council, and other bodies and

12. The use of Force – Un Charter
The main organs of the UN are the General Assembly, the
security council, the economic and social council,
Trusteeship Council, International Court of Justice,
Secretariat,
The opening of the Preamble to the UN Charter states the
determination ‘to save succeeding generations from the scourge
of war’,
Article 1(1) is: To maintain international peace and security, and
to that end: to take effective collective measures for the
prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the

13. The use of Force – Un Charter
and in conformity with the principles of justice and international
law, adjustment or settlement of international disputes or
situations which might lead to a breach of the peace.
While Article 2(3) commits UN member states to settle their
international disputes by peaceful means in order to ensure that
international peace and security, and justice, are not
endangered.
Article 2(4) commits members to refrain in their international
relations from the threat or use of force ‘against the territorial
integrity or political independence of any State, or in any other

14. The use of Force – Un Charter
 UN charter article 2(4) has been ratified by all the members and
is protected by the United Nations Charter 1945 to prohibit the
use of force by states.
 Most scholars have interpreted Article 2(4) to be banning the
use of force as in “territorial integrity or political independence
of states";
 The general principle is to ban the use of armed forces except
in cases where; there is collective action-pursued to maintain or
even enforce peace (Articles 24, 25, and Chapter VII)
 This appears to be even more elaborated in Resolution 2625 of

15. The use of Force – Un Charter - The 1970 General
Assembly Resolution 2625
"The Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning
Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States" was
adopted by the GA on 24 October 1970, during a
commemorative session to celebrate the twenty-fifth
anniversary of the UN.
"the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples
enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations" embraces the
right of all peoples "freely to determine, without external
interference, their political status and to pursue their economic,
social and cultural development" as well as the duty of every

16. The use of Force – Un Charter - The 1970 General
Assembly Resolution 2625
The resolution identifies the following duties:
Every State has the duty to refrain in its international relations
from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or
political independence of any State, or in any other manner
inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nations. Such a
threat or use of force constitutes a violation of international law
and the Charter of the United Nations and shall never be
employed as a means of settling international issues.

17. The use of Force – Un Charter - The 1970 General
Assembly Resolution 2625
1. A war of aggression constitutes a crime against the peace.
2. States have the duty to refrain from propaganda for wars of
aggression.
3. Every State has the duty to refrain from the threat or use of force
to violate the existing international boundaries of another State
or as a means of solving international disputes, including
territorial disputes and problems concerning frontiers of States.
4. Every State likewise has the duty to refrain from the threat or
use of force to violate international lines of demarcation, such as
armistice lines, established by or pursuant to an international
agreement to which it is a party or which it is otherwise bound to

18. The use of Force – Un Charter - The 1970 General
Assembly Resolution 2625
5. Nothing in the foregoing shall be construed as prejudicing the
positions of the parties concerned with regard to the status and
effects of such lines under their special regimes or as affecting
their temporary character.
6. States have a duty to refrain from acts of reprisal involving the
use of force.
7. Every State has the duty to refrain from any forcible action
which deprives peoples referred to in the elaboration of the
principle of equal rights and self-determination of their right to
self-determination and freedom and independence.

19. The use of Force – Un Charter - The 1970 General
Assembly Resolution 2625
8. Every State has the duty to refrain from organizing or
encouraging the organization of irregular forces or armed
bands, including mercenaries, for incursion into the territory of
another State.
9. Every State has the duty to refrain from organizing, instigating,
assisting or participating in acts of civil strife or terrorist acts in
another State or acquiescing in organized activities within its
territory directed towards the commission of such acts, when
the acts referred to in the present paragraph involve a threat or

20. The use of Force – Un Charter - GA resolution 3314 of 1974
– Resolution on the Definition of Aggression.
 ‘Aggression is the use of armed force by a state against the
sovereignty, territorial integrity or political independence of
another state, or in any manner inconsistent with the Charter of
the United Nations.’
 First use of armed force against Article 2(4) is deemed to be
prima facie evidence of an act of aggression.
 Acts identified as aggression include an invasion or armed
attack; any annexation of territory; bombardment by the armed
forces of a state against the territory of another state;

21. The use of Force – Un Charter - GA resolution 3314 of 1974
– Resolution on the Definition of Aggression.
 Acts identified as aggression include an invasion or armed
attack; any annexation of territory; bombardment by the armed
forces of a state against the territory of another state; an attack
by the armed forces of a state on the land, sea or air force,
marine and air fleets of another state; and the sending, by or on
behalf of a state, of armed bands, groups, irregulars or
mercenaries who carry out acts of armed force against another
state ‘of such gravity as to amount to acts defined as
aggression’.
 This is the framework provided by the United Nations for the

22. The use of Force
The UN has the role of ensuring international peace and
security.
Both the prohibition on the threat and use of force (Article 2(4))
and the prohibition on intervention in matters within domestic
jurisdiction (Article 2(7)) were intended to do so.
The responsibility to make these provisions effective is on the
Security Council.
The SC will be discussed in detail subsequently.