Originally published on the CGS blog on December 7, 2010.
It seems like only yesterday that I was in Kampala watching representatives from nations around the world leading the International Criminal Court (ICC) on the path to becoming the first permanent court to try individuals for the crime of aggression. But that was back in July, and a lot has happened in the last five months.
Today I am in New York tracking the conversations at the United Nations at the ninth Assembly of State Parties for the International Criminal Court to see whether States such as Japan, United States , U.K. and France will use these proceedings to try to roll back the decision on the crime of aggression.
The crime of aggression, the act of one state waging unlawful war against another, has been a central concern for the United States for decades. In 1974, the U.S. joined in the U.N. General Assembly decision to ban the planning for or executing an unlawful war. The United Nations Security Council, which will remain the primary authority over determining when states have undertaken unlawful war, will likely one day work in tandem with the ICC, to determine who is legally responsible for making that fateful decision.
This decision on aggression came after two weeks of intense meetings in Kampala capping eight years of negotiations by parties to the ICC. The United States was voluntarily absent from the earlier negotiations. Despite having decided not to become a member of the ICC, the United States participated fully in the negotiations in Kampala and are here in New York at the ASP. The American delegation continues to be led by Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues Stephen J. Rapp and State Department Legal Adviser Harold H. Koh. The Obama administration should be applauded for its policy of constructive engagement with the Court. The deal they struck in Kampala and their presence in New York this week will serve U.S. national security interests and will help prevent aggressive war and foster peace in the future.
The decision on aggression formed by consensus in Kampala was a historic agreement by state parties, observers, and civil society alike. For the first time we had a clear definition of aggression and a process to move forward to ensure that this crime can be prosecuted in the future. I will keep you posted on how this critical amendment fares this week.
