Wading Knee-Deep into the Rubicon: Escalation and the Morality of Limited Strikes. Issue 2 (2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Brunstetter, Daniel R.
• Is Part Of: Ethics & international affairs. Volume 34:Issue 2(2020)
• Page Start: 161
• Page End: 173
• Publication Date: 2020
• Subjects: just war, -- jus ad vim, -- limited force, -- limited strikes, -- escalation, -- Soleimani strike, -- Trump Administration, -- Syria red line, -- ethics of force; International relations -- Moral and ethical aspects -- Periodicals; 172.405
• DOI: 10.1017/S0892679420000210
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0892-6794

Abstract

Abstract: Limited strikes are arguably different from war insofar as they are more circumscribed, less destructive, and cost less in blood and treasure to employ. However, what they can achieve is also considerably more circumscribed than what is set out by the goals of war. How do we morally evaluate limited strikes? As part of the roundtable, "The Ethics of Limited Strikes, " this essay argues that we need to turn to the ethics of limited of force, or jus ad vim, to do so. Two moral assumptions that are the keystone to jus ad vim can shed light on the moral imperatives and ethical dilemmas of undertaking limited strikes. First, such strikes should be seen as an alternative to war, and not part of the jus ad bellum last resort process. What I call the "Rubicon assessment" determines at what level force should be used: at the level of war, with all its costs and unpredictability, or at that of the more predictable and less costly limited force. Second, limited strikes should adhere to a "presumption against escalation"; that is, a moral commitment not to escalate to war. This essay highlights these moral principles in five different limited strike scenarios: "hot pursuit, " "red line, " "the last straw, " "the point of no return, " and "the right of retaliation." The conclusion explores the notion of justice after limited strikes, or what I call jus post vim, to show that while what can be accomplished by limited strikes is inherently constrained, they can, if used morally and in tune with diplomacy, be of service in the quest for peace.