Do the Security Council Resolutions authorise the use of force against Iraq?
If customary and treaty law do not sanction war on Iraq, do existing Security Council Resolutions do so? The UK, Australia and the US point to Security Council Resolutions 1441 and its predecessor Resolutions 678 and 687 as providing authorisation for the current use of force. The problem with this approach is two fold: • Firstly, the original Resolutions were aimed at driving Iraq out of Kuwait (following an illegal invasion) and imposing sanctions. Both are now stale and have been superseded by subsequent events and Resolutions. • Secondly the US implicitly acknowledged its lack of legal authority under Resolution 1441 by trying to obtain a new Resolution that explicitly authorised the use of force. US attempts to obtain a fresh Resolution suggests that even the US doubts that Resolution 1441 and the earlier Resolutions 678 and 687 authorise the current use of force. Resolutions 678 and 687 were passed to enable a UN-approved coalition to expel Iraq from Kuwait. The current war is a
