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The Laws of War

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 March 2017

Josef L. Kunz
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Extract

It seems that the development of the laws of war from the beginnings of our international law to the present day has completed a full circle. With the definitive decentralization of the medieval communitas Christiana and the coming into existence of the national sovereign state, wars appeared in which new methods for the conduct of war—armies of mercenaries on foot, invention of gunpowder—were combined with the deep ideological split between Catholics and Protestants. The wars of that time were conducted with the greatest cruelty and inhumanity, reaching their climax with the terrible Thirty Years’ War, which may well be called a total war.

Type
Research Article
Information
American Journal of International Law , Volume 50 , Issue 2 , April 1956 , pp. 313 - 337
Copyright
Copyright © American Society of International Law 1956

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References

1 J. F. P. Veale, Advance to Barbarism (1953).

2 Josef L. Kunz, “Plus de lois de la guerre?”, Revue Générale de Droit International Public, 1934, pp. 22–57; and “The Chaotic Status of the Laws of War,” in 45 A.J.I.L. 37–61 (1951)Google Scholar. See also idem, Kriegsrecht und Neutralitätsrecht (1935).

3 See, e.g., Ch. Rousseau, Droit International Public (1953) ; P. Guggenheim, Traité de Droit International Public, Vol. II (1954); A. Verdross, Völkerrecht (3rd ed., 1955).

4 C. John Colombos, The International Law of the Sea 359–695 (3rd ed., 1954).

5 Oppenheim-Lauterpacht, International Law. A Treatise, Vol. II (7th ed., 1952).

6 G. Balladore Pallieri, Diritto Bellico (2nd ed., 1954).

7 J. Stone, Legal Controls of International Conflict 286–732 (1954).

8 E. Castrén, The Present Law of War and Neutrality (1954).

9 Institut de Droit International, La Révision du Droit de la Guerre. Rapport des Trois (Coudert, François, Lauterpacht), 45 Annuaire de l’Institut de Droit International 555 (I) (Bâle, 1954).

10 See R. R. Baxter in 47 A.J.I.L. 702–703 (1953).

11 See Kunz, Josef L., “The Geneva Conventions of August 12, 1949,” in Law and Politics in the World Community 279–316, 368–373 (Univ. of California, 1953)Google Scholar.

12 See the Report of 1954 (in German) of the International Committee of the Red Cross (Geneva, 1955, 53 pp.).

13 33 Department of State Bulletin 69–79 (1955). See R. R. Baxter in 49 A.J.I.L. 548–555 (1955).

14 See also this writer’s Spanish lectures, held in 1954 at the Cursos Francisco a Vitoria in Spain, now published as a book, La Problematica Actual de las Leyes de la Guerra (Valladolid, 1955).

15 Thus a unilateral restatement of the laws of war by the states of the free world is suggested by C. P. Phillips, “Air Warfare and Law,” in 21 George Washington Law Review 311–335, 395–422 (1952–53).

16 Thus Bivens, in 48 A.J.I.L. 140–145 (1954), proposes the revision in the form of a restatement of the laws of war for the armed forces of collective security organizations.

17 See Sir Cecil Hurst in 32 Grotius Society Transactions 135–153 (1946); see also recently Sir McNair, Arnold D., The Development of International Justice (New York, 1954)Google Scholar.

18 H. Lauterpacht, “Codification and Development of International Law,” in 49 A.J.I.L. 16–43, esp. at 31–35 (1955).

19 A. Rolin, Le Droit moderne de la guerre, Vol. 1, p. 10 (1920).

20 Hyde, Charles Cheney, International Law, Vol. III, p. 1693 (2nd ed., Boston, 1945)Google Scholar.

21 “The Grotius Tradition in International Law,” 23 British Year Book of International Law 1–53, at 39 (1946); Oppenheim-Lauterpacht, , International Law, Vol. II, p. 150 (6th ed., London, 1940)Google Scholar.

22 Philosophie du Panaméricanisme 46 (1945).

23 In 58 Revue Géneéale du Droit International Public 58 (1954).

24 “The Outlawry of War and the Laws of War,” in 47 A.J.I.L. 365–376 (1953).

25 Oppenheim-Lauterpacht, op. cit., note 5 supra, 217–223; H. Lauterpacht, “Rules of Warfare in Unlawful War,” in Law and Politics in the World Community, op. cit. supra, 89–113.

26 W. Schätzel, “Agressionskrieg und Haager Kriegsrecht,” 24 Nordisk Tidsskrift for International Ret 17–31 (1954).

27 Ford, W. J., De Volkenrechtelijke positie van verzetsliedern 299, 300 (Amsterdam, 1955 Google Scholar.

28 “Denmark’s Legal Position during the Occupation,” 1 Jus Gentium 2–21 (Copenhagen, 1949).

29 Op. cit. note 3 supra, 361.

30 See, e.g., U. S. v. List, XI War Trials 1247; The Adelaide Star” case, decided in Denmark, 1 Jus Gentium 117–228 (1949).

31 A Modern Law of Nations (New York, 1948)Google ScholarPubMed.

32 Loc. cit., note 24 supra.

33 Op. cit., note 17 supra.

34 Op. cit., note 5 supra, 224.

35 Proceedings of the American Society of International Law, 1953, p. 97.

36 Loc. cit., note 25 supra, 99.

37 “Quelques considerations sur une révision éventuelle des Conventions de La Haye relatives à la guerre,” 37 Revne Internationale de la Croix Rouge 417–433, at 433 (1955).

38 See, e.g., G. Schwarzenberger, in 37 Grotius Society Transactions 1 ff. (1942); also H. A. Smith.

39 E.g., Kulski, in Proceedings of the American Society of International Law, 1949, pp. 124–126.

40 See, e.g., R. R. Baxter, ibid., 1953, pp. 90–98.

41 The Revision of the Laws of War,” 29 British Tear Book of International Law 360–382, at 372 (1952).

42 See Josef L. Kunz, loc. cit., note 11 supra, 291–298, 301–304.

43 Loc. cit., note 37 supra, 432.

44 99 Journal of the Royal United Service Institution 61 (1954).

45 This writer is indebted to the International Committee of the Red Cross for sending him the text of the proposed Draft Rules in English and French, as well as the accompanying materials. See also Erik Castrén, “La Protection juridique de la population civile dans la guerre moderne,” 59 Revue Générale de Droit International Public 121–136 (1955).

46 International Committee of the Red Cross: Draft Rules for the Protection of the Civilian Population from the Dangers of Indiscriminate Warfare (D 386 b) with commentary (Geneva, June, 1955. Mimeographed. 115 pp.).

47 Among them two Americans, Major R. R. Baxter and Mr. Raymund T. Yingling.

48 See Commission of Experts, Summary of opinions (D 347 b) (Geneva, May, 1954. Mimeographed. 14 pp.).

49 Op. cit., note 7 supra, 382.

50 See W. Schätzel, “Neutralität,” 53 Die Friedens-warte 28–36 (1955).

51 See Kunz, loc. cit., note 11 supra, 288–290.

52 See his article in 50 A.J.I.L. 61–68 (1956).

53 Loc. cit., note 41 supra, 378, 377.

54 Op. cit., note 7 supra, 407.

55 Op. cit., note 4 supra, 500.

56 Loc cit., note 37 supra, 426–428.

57 Op. cit., note 8 supra, 5.

58 Loc. cit., note 37 supra.

59 Hans J. Morgenthau, Politics Among Nations 218 (1948).

60 Colombos, op. cit., note 4 supra, 360, 370, 381.

61 Op.cit., note 8 supra, 245.

62 Ibid., 289.

63 Heinz-Gerhard Helm in a doctor’s thesis sent to this writer, Das Operationsgebiet im Seekriegsrecht (Munich, pp. 250–264), holds that war zones are now legal under certain conditions, and unrestricted submarine warfare is legal within these zones, but not on the high seas in general.

64 The British retaliatory system in the two wars had to justify itself, (if at all) as retaliation. In policy, however, that system may as well and more significantly justify itself de lege ferenda.” Op. cit., note 7 supra, 500 ff.

65 Oppenheim-Lauterpacht, op. cit., note 5 supra, V, 576.

66 Ibid. 491–493.

67 Ibid. 351, also footnote 1; see the discussion on aerial bombardment in the second World War, ibid. 527–530.

68 Loc. cit., note 41 supra. At the time of writing, this writer had not yet received the 1953 British Year Book of International Law and thus could not make use of Judge Lauterpacht’s latest study on “The Limits of the Operation of the Laws of War.”

69 See Josef L. Kunz, Kriegsrecht und Neutralitätsrecht 2–4 (Vienna, 1935).

70 That is the correct distinction, not between “combatants and noncombatants”; the latter is a distinction within the armed forces.

71 C. P. Phillips, loc. cit., note 15 supra.

72 Loc. cit., note 26 supra.

73 Op. cit., note 3 supra, 361–397.

74 Op. cit., note 27 supra.

75 Loc. cit., note 37 supra.

76 Bush, Modern Arms and Free Men (1950); H. A. Smith, “Modern Weapons and Modern War,” Yearbook of World Affairs 222–247 (London, 1955).

77 See Josef L. Kunz, “Atombombe und Völkerrecht,” 2 Österreichische Zeitschrift für öffentliches Recht 414–436 (1950).

78 Air Power and War Rights (3rd ed., 1947).

79 New York Times, Dee. 25, 1955, p. 40.

80 Ibid., Dec. 2, 1955, p. 6.

81 Rosebury, Peace or Pestilence (1949); J. Voncken, “Devant la guerre biologique,” Revue Générale Belge, 1953, pp. 786–795.

82 See Kunz, Josef L., Gaskrieg und Völkerrecht (Vienna, 1927)Google Scholar.

83 New York Times, Nov. 7, 1955, p. 13.

84 “Codify convenience, where convenience can undisputably be demonstrated; leave military effectiveness alone, so long as military effectiveness remains the direct shield of the free world and no reciprocal advantage can be gained by its merely formal limitation.” Loc. cit., note 15 supra, 423.

85 See Albrecht in 47 A.J.I.L. 590–614 (1953).

86 Cf. A. F. Reel, The Case of General Yamashita (Chicago, 1949).

87 “Unprivileged members of resistance movements may be punished by the enemy after they have been captured. In no other way can an army guard and protect itself from the gadfly tactics of such armed resistance,” stated the U. S. Military Tribunal in the Hostage Case. In the 7th ed. of Oppenheim’s second volume Lauterpacht argues in highly complicated sentences in favor of this new norm; but in the 6th ed. (1940, p. 456) he had written: “Beyond the limits of these concessions [Hague Convention IV, Regulations, Articles 1 and 2] belligerents will never be able to go without the greatest danger to their troops.” (Emphasis supplied.)

88 Dunbar, N. H. C., “The significance of military necessity in the laws of war,” 68 Juridical Review 201–212 (Edinburgh, 1955)Google Scholar.

89 See Kunz, Josef L., “Die Koreanisehe Kriegsgefangenenfrage,” 4 Archiv des Völkerrechts 408–423 (1954)Google Scholar, and in Proceedings of the American Society of International Law, 1953, pp. 99–111. See also Lt. Col. Hess, Frederick W., “A Post-Korea Look at the Geneva Conventions,” 35 Military Review 52–58 (1955)Google Scholar.

90 Huber, Max, “Wandlungen des Völkerrechts,” 52 Die Friedens-warte 297–310, at 308 (1955)Google Scholar.