The Preventive Use of Force: A Cosmopolitan Institutional Proposal

Abstract

The permissibility of the preventive use of military force is discussed from a cosmopolitan normative perspective, which recognizes the basic human rights of all people. It is argued that decisions to use preventive force can be justified if they are taken within an appropriate rule-governed, institutional framework, the goal of which is to help to safeguard vulnerable countries against unjustified interventions without causing unacceptable risks as the result of inaction. A scheme is proposed that promotes states’ accountability with a combination of mechanisms that operate prior to and after the use of preventive force.