The United Nations Security Council and the Authorisation of Force

International Law › Law

The United Nations Security Council and the Authorisation of Force

By Marko Svicevic
Hart Publishing September 2025

Specifications

ISBN-13
9781509971251
Publisher
Hart Publishing
Publication
September 2025
Format
Hardback
Jurisdiction
U.K. ? Countri(es) for reference only

Also available as

Paperback

Details

This book examines the United Nations Security Council's authorisation of the use of force, considering the extensive body of UN Security Council resolutions across its now 8 years of existence.

As one of the established exceptions to the Article 2(4) UN Charter prohibition on the use of force, UN Security Council authorisation of force remains a key focus for both States and scholars alike. Despite the apparent consequences of authorisation, authorising resolutions lack prescribed formats or mandatory content. The UN Security Council has, however, developed a consistent practice of prior explicit authorisation.

UN Security Council practice overwhelmingly shows that authorising resolutions explicitly determine a situation a threat to international peace and security, invoke Chapter VII (or VIII), use specific authorising language, place time or functional limits on authorisation, and impose reporting obligations on those authorised to use force. The book ultimately argues that prior explicit authorisation constitutes a well-established practice, rejecting the legality and admissibility of implicit or retroactive authorisation.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
1. UN Security Council Authorisation of Force: Of Forms and Consequences
2. The UN Charter System of Collective Security and UN Security Council Authorisation of Force
3. Analytical Framework of the Study
4. The Interpretation of UN Security Council Resolutions
5. Chapter Overview

2. Explicit Authorisation to UN Member States
1. Introduction
2. Explicit Authorisation during the Cold War Era
3. Explicit Authorisation After the Cold War Era
4. 'Combined' Authorisation of Force to Multiple Entities
5. Conclusion

3. Explicit Authorisation to Regional Organisations
1. Introduction
2. Authorisation to the African Union
3. Authorisation to the European Union
4. Authorisation to the Economic Community of West African States
5. Combined Authorisation of Force: Resolutions Adopted on Chad and the Central African Republic
6. Conclusion

4. Explicit Authorisation to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisations
1. Introduction
2. Resolutions Adopted on the Former Yugoslavia, including Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo
3. Resolutions adopted on the situation in Afghanistan
4. Resolution 1973 (2011) | NATO enforcement action in Libya
a. Explicit Authorisation and the Protection of Civilians
b. Implementation of Resolution 1973 (2012)
5. Conclusion

5. Explicit Authorisation to UN Peacekeeping Missions
1. Introduction
2. Explicit Authorisation to UN Peacekeeping Missions
3. Explicit Authorisation: 'All necessary measures' and 'take the necessary actions/measures'
4. 'Mandated Authorisation' of Force
5. Conclusion

6. The (In)admissibility of Implicit UN Security Council Authorisation
1. Introduction
2. The Nature of Implicit Authorisation
3. The Incompatibility and Inadmissibility of Implicit Authorisation
4. Alleged Practice of Implicit Authorisation
5. Conclusion

7. The (In)admissibility of Retroactive UN Security Council Authorisation
1. Introduction
2. Doctrinal Debates and the (In)admissibility of Retroactive Authorisation
3. Alleged UNSC Practice of Retroactive Authorisation
4. Comparison of Cases and the Inability to Deduce an Established Practice
5. Conclusion

8. Contemporary Developments and Practice Challenging the Need for Prior Explicit Authorisation
1. Introduction
2. Decentralised Collective Security: African Regional and Sub-Regional Security Frameworks
3. The Right of Self-Defence and its Intersection with UN Security Council Authorisation
4. Between Ambiguity for Unanimity and Abdication of Responsibility
5. Conclusion

9. Conclusion
1. Introduction
2. Explicit Authorisation as a Well-Established Practice
3. Exceptions to Prior Explicit Authorisation?
4. Contemporary Developments and Practice Challenging the Need for UNSC Authorisation?
5. Concluding Observations
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