The research group’s overall ambition is to provide an open forum for discussing cutting-edge research and to serve as a sounding board for those working on developing individual or joint research projects. We research the evolution of the international law of peace from the procedural aspects of peaceful dispute resolution in judicial and non-judicial mechanisms, from the ICJ to mediation processes, as well as substantive topics, including sustainable peace, gendered peace, constitutional peace, positive peace (non-discrimination and equality), culture of peace education, and the inter-play with other values, such as Solidarity, Development, Environment, and Common Interests of Humankind. This revisionist trend widens the gap between the morality of war and international law, and thus raises important questions about the relationship between the morality of war and the law of war.

Further, in recent years, philosophical discussions of the morality of war, have seen the rise of an important revisionist movement, which questions traditional assumptions in just war theory, such as the moral equality of combatants and the immunity of civilians. The extraterritorial application of human rights, as well as the application of economic, social and cultural rights in armed conflict situations, promise to extend the boundaries and understanding of the relevant law on international responsibility for States and non-State armed groups.

These armed conflicts have resulted in mass atrocity crimes costing the lives of millions of individuals, dire humanitarian crises through large displacements of populations, threats to, and breaches of, international peace and security, and enormous challenges concerning the rebuilding of these conflict-shattered societies. Since 1945 there have been more than 100 armed conflicts in different parts of the world. Several countries have experienced emergency situations caused by terrorist attacks or other major threats to public order and security.

Situations involving the use of force, although to varying degrees and subject to different rules, range from internal disturbances and tensions, such as riots, isolated and sporadic acts of violence or other acts of a similar nature, to high-intensity non-international or international armed conflicts. These broad areas of research are approached from legal, ethical-philosophical, and socio-political perspectives. The research group’s focus areas also include different human rights issues relating to post-conflict situations and societies in transition.

Human rights armed conflict