With the onset of Putin’s aggression against Ukraine, and subsequent implicit threats of a Russian nuclear strike against Ukraine or Western allies, the specter of “all-out war” has reemerged. The fear of nuclear war had largely dissipated since the end of the Cold War. Military conflict generally has taken place through small- and medium-sized wars [ Read More ]
Nearly two weeks ago, Russia launched a military strike against Ukraine, referring to it as a “peacekeeping mission.” However, the international community has united around its clear-eyed understanding that Russia’s actions are more than a mere peacekeeping mission: Russia wishes to glorify itself, either by enlarging its borders or by installing a pro-Russian government. Although [ Read More ]
During the night Wednesday, Russia launched a military strike against Ukraine, referring to it as a “peacekeeping mission” intended to demilitarize Ukraine. However, it is clear to the international community that Russia’s actions are more than a mere peacekeeping mission: instead, Russia’s invasion is an egregious violation of agreed-upon laws of justifiable warfare. President Putin [ Read More ]
For centuries, warfighting was a nation-to-nation reality and wars were often big events. With the advent of nuclear weapons, however, wars are less likely to be big events between powerful nations. Instead, we tend to see small- and medium-sized wars and the use of surrogates. Our military is adjusting, especially since 9/11, to fight these [ Read More ]
In the twenty-first century, war has morphed into something historically unrecognizable. Our conflicts are qualitatively and quantitatively unlike those in the past. What’s more, war will morph even more in upcoming years. Today’s wars are more about cultural and religious animosity than enlargement of borders or rectification of injustice. Further, rapidly developing technologies have not [ Read More ]
There are few statements more mistaken than “all is fair in love and war.” The moral law applies in every context, including even on the battlefield. Thus, the just war tradition recognizes and affirms a moral symmetry between criteria for deciding whether or not to make war (“jus ad bellum”) and criteria for how to [ Read More ]
The first two decades of the twenty-first century have been rife with war and threats of war. Jihadist-related deaths have increased from an average of roughly 2,500 innocents per year from 2001 to 2006 to a peak of 44,000 in 2014. ISIS waged deadly attacks and genocidal missions across Africa, Asia, and Europe. Russia invaded Ukraine and annexed Crimea. The Syrian civil [ Read More ]
As we noted in a recent article, the roots of the just war tradition are found both in the Graeco-Roman tradition and in the biblical witness. Even so, many modern histories of the early church assert that the early church was universally pacifist. In fact, if you mentioned the word “pacifist,” for many today the [ Read More ]
What is the genealogy of the just war tradition? If we trace its roots, will we find them planted in religious or secular soil? The answer is “both.” The just war tradition emerges primarily from two streams of thought: the ancient Graeco-Roman world and the biblical writers of the Old and New Testaments. This is [ Read More ]
Of the three logical categories in the ethics of warfare—pacifism, jihadism/crusaderism/militarism, and just war—the just war tradition alone is properly realistic. It is anthropologically realist, in that it alone recognizes the limits to what can be achieved in a world populated with finite and fallen humans. Evil cannot be eradicated, neither by laying down our [ Read More ]