Faculty Bibliography

Reframing nuclear weapons as a humanitarian issue revolutionised the diplomatic debate surrounding them, and in 2017, 122 countries adopted the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). The humanitarian approach to disarmament provided inspiration for this historic achievement. While traditional disarmament aims primarily to protect state security, humanitarian disarmament strives to end human suffering. This article examines the TPNW as the latest step in humanitarian disarmament. Through a close analysis of process and text, it finds that humanitarian disarmament served as a catalyst to and model for the TPNW’s negotiations and shaped its purpose and provisions. The article also shows how the humanitarian underpinnings of the TPNW allowed it to transform nuclear disarmament and how the new treaty strengthened humanitarian disarmament in return.

The 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions comprehensively bans a weapon that causes civilian casualties both during and after attacks. The convention also sets legal precedent in three ways. First, the convention expands the scope of past treaties by, for example, covering munitions that function properly and those that do not. Secondly, it creates groundbreaking humanitarian obligations, most notably those related to victim assistance. Thirdly, it anticipates future concerns by recognizing the threats posed by non-state armed groups. This comparative analysis of the convention shows how it breaks new ground for future weapons treaties and illuminates the process by which international humanitarian law can be advanced.