The concept of aggression in modern international law is rooted in a complex history of war and conflict. Defined as the use of armed force by one state against another in the absence of the justification of self-defense or the authorization of the United Nations, aggression has been a recurring issue on the global stage. The legal framework surrounding the crime of aggression has evolved over the years, with the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) now confirming a crucial definition and criminalization of aggression...

Ethnic Cleansing Is Happening in Nagorno-Karabakh. How Can the World Respond?

Article by Ambassador David J. Scheffer

Crimes against humanity involve a specific set of grave human rights violations committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack against a civilian population (more on that below). If the United States is serious about fighting impunity for the repeated patterns of atrocities committed in Ukraine and many other situations around the world, it should close the crimes against humanity loophole in U.S. law as soon as possible.

LDNS Lab Distinguished Fellow Amb. Kurt Volker speaks on US aid in Ukraine in this video for BBC World.

Leadership, Diplomacy, and National Security Lab Co-Founder and ASU Ambassador-in-Residence Michael C. Polt shares his views on how the West can build a more resilient future, one that fends off the resurgence and ascendancy of autocrats.

I’m from a fortunate generation. I can remember a time — about a quarter-century ago — when the world seemed to be coming together. The great Cold War contest between communism and capitalism appeared to be over. Democracy was still spreading. Nations were becoming more economically interdependent. The internet seemed ready to foster worldwide communications. It seemed as if there would be a global convergence around a set of universal values — freedom, equality, personal dignity, pluralism, human rights.