The use of force by the states under international law

Notwithstanding the strict restriction on the use of military force under Article 2(4) of the United Nations Charter (UN Charter), notable exceptions to the provision are conferred in Article 51. There are various interpretations among the states and researchers on Article 51 of the UN Charter. Cons...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Alqahtani, Mohammed Salem, Rohaida Nordin, Faridah Jalil
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2021
Online Access:http://journalarticle.ukm.my/18014/
http://journalarticle.ukm.my/18014/1/52647-173118-1-SM.pdf
_version_ 1848814460431499264
author Alqahtani, Mohammed Salem
Rohaida Nordin,
Faridah Jalil,
author_facet Alqahtani, Mohammed Salem
Rohaida Nordin,
Faridah Jalil,
author_sort Alqahtani, Mohammed Salem
building UKM Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Notwithstanding the strict restriction on the use of military force under Article 2(4) of the United Nations Charter (UN Charter), notable exceptions to the provision are conferred in Article 51. There are various interpretations among the states and researchers on Article 51 of the UN Charter. Consequently, some questions beg for answers and will: what makes up an ‘armed attack’ and what does ‘occurs’ mean? Does it mean that States should wait until they have been attacked before defending themselves? Can states rely on Article 51 of the Charter to use military force on terrorist group(s) in the name of self-defense? Is there any time limit within which the state can defend itself in self-defense? What is collective security? Thus, this research is undertaken to examine and provide answers to the above said questions by using a doctrinal legal research methodology. The findings reveal that Article 2(4) of the UN Charter encompasses the actual use of armed force and the threat to use force. The use of force through irregular forces should be regarded as an armed attack by the Charter; and a state’s right to defend itself is not without limitation or time limit. The UN Charter has not defined ‘armed attack’. Therefore, the authors recommend for the UN Charter amendment to provide a clause that will extend the meaning of ‘armed attack’ to include not only acts by regular forces but also irregular forces.
first_indexed 2025-11-15T00:34:26Z
format Article
id oai:generic.eprints.org:18014
institution Universiti Kebangasaan Malaysia
institution_category Local University
language English
last_indexed 2025-11-15T00:34:26Z
publishDate 2021
publisher Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling oai:generic.eprints.org:180142022-02-08T07:27:06Z http://journalarticle.ukm.my/18014/ The use of force by the states under international law Alqahtani, Mohammed Salem Rohaida Nordin, Faridah Jalil, Notwithstanding the strict restriction on the use of military force under Article 2(4) of the United Nations Charter (UN Charter), notable exceptions to the provision are conferred in Article 51. There are various interpretations among the states and researchers on Article 51 of the UN Charter. Consequently, some questions beg for answers and will: what makes up an ‘armed attack’ and what does ‘occurs’ mean? Does it mean that States should wait until they have been attacked before defending themselves? Can states rely on Article 51 of the Charter to use military force on terrorist group(s) in the name of self-defense? Is there any time limit within which the state can defend itself in self-defense? What is collective security? Thus, this research is undertaken to examine and provide answers to the above said questions by using a doctrinal legal research methodology. The findings reveal that Article 2(4) of the UN Charter encompasses the actual use of armed force and the threat to use force. The use of force through irregular forces should be regarded as an armed attack by the Charter; and a state’s right to defend itself is not without limitation or time limit. The UN Charter has not defined ‘armed attack’. Therefore, the authors recommend for the UN Charter amendment to provide a clause that will extend the meaning of ‘armed attack’ to include not only acts by regular forces but also irregular forces. Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2021 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://journalarticle.ukm.my/18014/1/52647-173118-1-SM.pdf Alqahtani, Mohammed Salem and Rohaida Nordin, and Faridah Jalil, (2021) The use of force by the states under international law. Jurnal Antarabangsa Kajian Asia Barat, 13 . pp. 15-29. ISSN 2229-8924 https://ejournal.ukm.my/ijwas/issue/view/1445
spellingShingle Alqahtani, Mohammed Salem
Rohaida Nordin,
Faridah Jalil,
The use of force by the states under international law
title The use of force by the states under international law
title_full The use of force by the states under international law
title_fullStr The use of force by the states under international law
title_full_unstemmed The use of force by the states under international law
title_short The use of force by the states under international law
title_sort use of force by the states under international law
url http://journalarticle.ukm.my/18014/
http://journalarticle.ukm.my/18014/
http://journalarticle.ukm.my/18014/1/52647-173118-1-SM.pdf