Fernando Tesón offers two “humanitarian rationales” for the war in Iraq. The first, which he calls the “narrow” rationale, is that the war was fought to overthrow a tyrant. The second, “grand,” rationale is that it was fought as part of a strategy for defending the United States by establishing democratic regimes in the Middle East and throughout the world—peacefully, if possible, but by force if necessary. Both rationales strain the traditional understanding of humanitarian intervention.
You may also like

DEC 2, 2020 • Podcast
The United Nations at 75: Looking Back to Look Forward, Episode 4, with Bertrand Ramcharan
In the fourth and final installment of "The United Nations at 75: Looking Back to Looking Forward," host Margaret P. Karns speaks with Bertrand Ramcharan, former ...

NOV 12, 2020 • Podcast
The United Nations at 75: Looking Back to Look Forward, Episode 3, with Noeleen Heyzer
In the third episode of "The United Nations at 75: Looking Back to Look Forward," host Margaret P. Karns and Noeleen Heyzer, former executive director of ...

SEP 10, 2019 • Journal
Ethics & International Affairs Volume 33.3 (Fall 2019)
The highlight of the Fall 2019 issue of "Ethics & International Affairs" is a roundtable on "Economic Sanctions and Their Consequences." Other topics include human rights and ...