At OnFaith, Richard N. Haass of the Council on Foreign Relations argues that we need to move away from traditional, religious conceptions of “just” war and toward a globally-conscious concept of “justifiable” war:
One problem with just war theory is that it is too subjective. What constitutes a just cause is in the eyes of the beholder, as are the probability of success and any estimate of likely costs and benefits.
Just war theory is also too confining. Is the United Nations Security Council the only competent authority, or was NATO’s approval enough to make the Kosovo war just? Waging war only as a last resort means risking the lives of many while other policies are tried and found wanting.
That’s why justifiable war is a more useful concept. Justifiable wars undoubtedly include wars of necessity, that is, wars in which the most vital interests of a country are threatened and where there are no promising alternatives to using force. World War Two and the first Iraq war of 1990-1991 following Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait would qualify, as would wars of self-defense.
Continue reading at OnFaith.