Despite the conclusion of the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg that aggression is the 'supreme international crime', armed conflict remains a frequent and ubiquitous feature of international life, leaving millions of victims in its wake. This collection of original chapters by leading and emerging scholars from all around the world evaluates historic and current examples of the use of force and the context of crimes of aggression. As we approach the 75th anniversary of the Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal, Seeking Accountability for the Unlawful Use of Force examines the many systems and accountability frameworks which have developed since the Second World War. By suggesting new avenues for enhancing accountability structures already in place as well as proposing new frameworks needed, this volume will begin a movement to establish the mechanisms needed to charge those responsible for the unlawful use of force.

"This book hypothesises that an ILI perspective offers a better explanation of the law-State behaviour relationship during international crises than rival explanations grounded in positivism, realism or functional ism. Four case studies of State behaviour - of the US, the Soviet Union and the PRC during the Korean War (1950-1953), of the US and UK during the Suez crisis (1956), of the US and the Soviet Union during the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962) and of the US and an alliance of Latin American States during the Dominican Republic crisis (1965) - are used to test the hypothesis. The findings confirm the greater explanatory efficacy of ILI and demonstrate that the significance of international law to foreign policy decision-making during international crises is more than that of deterring the use of force as is assumed by rival theoretical approaches grounded in a rule-book image of international law."--Back cover.