The concept of sovereignty has been a contestable idea throughout history, and its meaning has oftentimes transformed to reflect prevailing systemic conditions and political priorities of major actors in each historical period. In this study, I argue that the social construction of state sovereignty is at the beginning stages of another major redefinition. In an era of globalization and regional integration, discourse on sovereignty has become increasingly prolific as the rhetoric of sovereignty moves away from Westphalian principles that were based exclusively on the agency of independent states. Furthermore, multinational campaigns to promote international human rights engender a discourse that suggests the idea of sovereignty is changing. Does this emerging discourse confirm the growing legitimacy of humanitarian intervention, or is it merely a discursive trend in international relations that does not indicate significant change in state perception and behavior? The purpose of this work is to address this question. / Master of Arts

The diploma thesis is concerned with the approach of Russian federation towards the humanitarian intervention concept, respectively to the responsibility to protect (R2P) doctrine, which was endorsed by all member states of the United Nations at the 2005 World Summit. The main idea of the doctrine is a duty of all states to protect their citizens, and if certain state is manifestly failing to protect its population, the international community has responsibility to use appropriate measures in order to protect lives of civilians. Therefore in extreme cases, states have the right to military intervene on a territory of other state. The Russian federation, which traditionally promotes principles of state sovereignty and non- interference, rejects the liberal conception of the humanitarian intervention and strongly criticizes interventions led by the West. On the other hand, Russia uses the concept if its own interests are at stake. The thesis illustrates this ambiguous perception of the humanitarian intervention concept by the Russian federation on several historic events, when Moscow either criticized Western states' implementation of the R2P concept (NATO intervention in Kosovo or the cases of Libya and Syria), or used the concept on its own in order to legitimize military intervention (Chechnya,...

The concept of sovereignty has been a contestable idea throughout history, and its meaning has oftentimes transformed to reflect prevailing systemic conditions and political priorities of major actors in each historical period. In this study, I argue that the social construction of state sovereignty is at the beginning stages of another major redefinition. In an era of globalization and regional integration, discourse on sovereignty has become increasingly prolific as the rhetoric of sovereignty moves away from Westphalian principles that were based exclusively on the agency of independent states. Furthermore, multinational campaigns to promote international human rights engender a discourse that suggests the idea of sovereignty is changing. Does this emerging discourse confirm the growing legitimacy of humanitarian intervention, or is it merely a discursive trend in international relations that does not indicate significant change in state perception and behavior? The purpose of this work is to address this question. / Master of Arts

Thesis (M.A.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2001. / Bibliography: leaves 133-139.

The United Nations Charter clearly forbids the use of force by one state against the territorial integrity of another state. The only two exceptions are self-defense or actions authorized by the United Nations Security Council. The 2003 intervention of Iraq by Coalition forces testes the resolve of the Charter and the United Nations system as a whole. The need to assess the legality and the effect of the Coalition’s intervention became a matter of interest to international relations scholars. This study uses the Just War Theory to make this assessment, with particular emphasis on the somewhat neglected jus in bello and jus post bellum elements. This study argues that the intervention by Coalition forces did not meet the requirements of a justified intervention as set out in the Just War Theory. This study has also found that the main reason for unlawful interventions is the existence of the veto in the SC. To limit unsanctioned interventions the veto should be scraped and there should be an attitude change within the Security Council, they should not view the democratization of the SC as an enemy, they should view it as an opportunity to save the UN system. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2013.

This dissertation explores a family of theoretical models of humanitarian military intervention. A number of recent theorists, including Tesón, Caney, Buchanan, Orend, Moellendorf, and Wheeler, build their models from a perspective called ‘cosmopolitanism.’ They offer arguments based on the moral supremacy of human rights, the arbitrary character of territorial boundaries, and the duty to protect individual human beings exposed to serious and systematic violence by their own governments. I develop a model of intervention that recognizes the moral significance of political self-government. To the extent that international society should countenance a ‘duty to protect’ human rights, the duty ought to be constrained by a commitment to the values of self-government. The model developed in this dissertation also recognizes the significance of international law enforcement. Insofar as we should permit a role of enforcement for international human rights, that role should be constrained by formally accepted global principles and in particular by positive obligations to prevent and punish actions regarded as international crimes. These other global values are viewed with suspicion by cosmopolitan theorists, who tend to construe them in stark contrast to the vision of global responsibility for human rights protection. But I will show how these other values emerged simultaneously with cosmopolitanism and share many of its underlying intuitions. Because self-government and law enforcement are linked politically to the cosmopolitan vision, these two distinctive global values can be utilized as tools to fortify or expand cosmopolitanism by enlarging the global sense of responsibility for human rights. The aim of this project is to explain how these other values came to be neglected by cosmopolitan theorists, and why they should not be forgotten. / Thesis (Ph.D, Philosophy) -- Queen's University, 2013-09-25 12:11:55.056

This thesis examines the theory and practice of humanitarian intervention in the early post-Cold War era. Taking as its basis US policy towards Somalia, Rwanda and Haiti between 1992 and 1994, it develops a theory of humanitarian intervention based on constructivist and scientific realist principles. Using identity as the organising concept, the thesis examines the meta-theoretical precepts of constructivism and scientific realism, which are developed into a methodology for analysing questions of foreign policy. Incorporating critical insights from sequential path analysis, morphogenetic social analysis - the notion of a dynamic mutual constitution of structure and agency - and constructivist social theory, the case studies provide a useful new means of conceptualising humanitarian intervention as a foreign policy practice through an identity-driven analysis. The findings of the research shed much light on this practice and its future prospects. They also suggest new directions for a scientific realist/constructivist research agenda.

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Master's thesis. / Format: PDF. Bibl.

Thesis (M.A. in International Security and Civil-Military Relations)--Naval Postgraduate School, March 2003. / Thesis advisor(s): Donald Abenheim, Karen Guttieri. Includes bibliographical references. Also available online.