Wars that are not Just Wars

Wars that are not Just Wars

Wars that are not Just Wars

There are some long-standing traditions of war ethics which are very different from the Just War tradition.

War is right if it is in the national interest

This doctrine, in the most extreme form, says that if a war is in a country's national interest then it is morally right for that country to go to war.

This looks as if it's giving permission to powerful nations to invade any country that has resources they need, or that is harbouring terrorists that they want to capture. But in fact, considerations of ethics and justice still have a significant effect.

If a country is seen to behave unjustly it creates great political problems for itself. Invading another country, even if it has something you want, may well produce more trouble than benefit.

The Right of the Ruler

This says that the decision of the ruler of a state on whether to wage war is final, and there is no moral argument that can be used against it.

This tradition is reflected in the phrase 'the divine right of kings', meaning that the ruler's actions carry with them God's support.

While this seems repellent to modern thinking, it was supported by the Christian church during many periods of history, when the monarch was guided by the church in war decisions.

Holy wars

Religious leaders have sometimes declared that there was a religious duty on believers to go to war. This idea appears often in the Bible and has been used to justify suicide bombing in recent times. Centuries ago it was the main justification given for the Crusades.