Crime of Aggression: Deceptive Expectations of International Criminal Law

Abstract

The author underlines that the crime of aggression has been viewed as the most serious crime against international peace since the Nuremberg Tribunal, which is unambiguously recognized in the Russian and Western doctrine. However, the term «aggression» has long become an instrument of interstate political struggle, although there has not been a single case of real criminal prosecution at the international level for this crime after World War II. In 2010 the Rome Statute was amended, defining signs of aggression as an international crime, as well as clarifying the rules for the exercise of jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. This event received rave reviews from most authors. But in reality, these optimistic expectations were destroyed — first of all, in terms of establishing effective jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court in relation to the crime of aggression. Establishing of the International Criminal Court jurisdiction by transferring the situation from the UN Security Council becomes practically impossible if the «interested» state is a Permanent member of the Security Council. The establishing of the International Criminal Court jurisdiction by transferring the situation from the state proprio motu is seriously limited (by the provisions of paragraphs 4, 5 of Art. 15-bis of the Rome Statute). As a result, the author concludes that at present it is impossible to speak of effective international criminal prosecution for the crime of aggression. Therefore, it makes sense to revise those norms of the Rome Statute, which cause the most negative reaction from leading states. Only this way the effective international prosecution of the crime of aggression will be possible in the future, together with the consistent development of international criminal justice in general.