Abstract

Throughout the Yemeni Civil War, western states have supplied weapons used in the indiscriminate bombing campaign conducted by the Saudis. In defence of their actions, British politicians have argued that they are exchanging weapons for influence, and using the influence obtained to encourage compliance with humanitarian law. An additional premise in the argument is that Britain is using its influence more benignly than alternative suppliers would use theirs if Britain were not on the scene. The idea is that Britain is substituting itself for other, less scrupulous, interveners. I argue that, regardless of whether British substitution intervention could be justified in this way…, it is not in fact justified, because Britain has not plausibly used its influence to secure an amount of good sufficient to offset the various harms that its actions have created (or to discharge the expanded duties of rescue that greater influence entails). In addition, the article identifies the various forms that substitution intervention can take, and shows how the concept reveals hitherto neglected reasons to both support and oppose intervention in foreign conflicts.

Highlights

  • Throughout the Yemeni Civil War, western states have supplied weapons used in the indiscriminate bombing campaign conducted by the Saudis

  • The report observes that 12,416 civilians have been injured (Human Rights Council, 2020)

  • An important point that emerges from the foregoing observations is that, in order for British SI to improve matters all-things-considered, Britain must use its influence to do an amount of good that is sufficiently large not just to exceed any good that the Backup Supplier would use its influence to produce, and to offset any bad its intervention engenders

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Summary

Introduction

Throughout the Yemeni Civil War, western states have supplied weapons used in the indiscriminate bombing campaign conducted by the Saudis. Some opponents of British arms sales seem to imagine that the third description provides the best account of the most relevant possible world in which Britain does not provide weapons.

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Conclusion
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