A.
Mandate
G.A.
Res.378 B (V) of 17 November 1950 (E,
F,
S,
R,
C)
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| B.
Studies undertaken by the Secretariat and Reports of the Secretary-General |
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| C.
Reports of the Working Group or Sub-Committee |
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| D.
Reports of the Special Rapporteur |
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1. Report
entitled, "The Possibility and Desirability of a Definition
of Aggression" prepared by the Special Rapporteur
as an annex to his report on the Draft Code of Offences
against the Peace and Security of Mankind. After a survey
of previous attempts to define aggression, the Special
Rapporteur stated that "whenever governments are called
upon to decide on the existence or non-existence of 'aggression
under international law', they base their judgment on criteria
derived from the 'natural', so to speak, notion of aggression...
and not on legal constructions. He came to the conclusion
that this "natural notion" of aggression is a "concept per
se", which "is not susceptible of definition". "A 'legal'
definition of aggression would be an artificial construction",
which could not be comprehensive enough to comprise all
imaginable cases of aggression, since the methods of aggression
are in a constant process of evolution.
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Second report of the Special Rapporteur on the
Draft Code of Offences against the Peace and Security
of Mankind, Mr. J. Spiropoulos (3rd session of the ILC
(1951))
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U.N. Doc. A/CN.4/44,
chp. II (in Ybk,
1951, vII)
- ILC Report, A/1858
(A/6/9), 1951, chp. III, par.39 |
| E.
Reports of the Drafting Committee |
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| F.
Comments by Governments |
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| G.
Other |
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1. 3rd
session of the International Law Commission (1951)
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Memorandum presented by Mr. Gilberto Amado
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U.N. Doc. A/CN.4/L.6
and Corr.1 (in Ybk,
1951, vII)
- ILC Report, A/1858
(A/6/9), 1951, chp. III, par.40 |
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Proposal by Mr. M.J.M. Yepes
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U.N. Doc. A/CN.4/L.7
(in Ybk,
1951, vII)
- ILC Report, A/1858
(A/6/9), 1951, chp. III, par.42 |
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Memorandum presented by Mr. Ricardo Alfaro
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U.N. Doc. A/CN.4/L.8
(in Ybk,
1951, vII)
- ILC Report, A/1858
(A/6/9), 1951, chp. III, paras.41, 46-52 |
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Proposal by Mr. Roberto Córdova
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U.N. Doc. A/CN.4/L.10
(in Ybk,
1951, vII)
- ILC Report, A/1858
(A/6/9), 1951, chp. III, par.44 |
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Proposal by Mr. Shushi Hsu
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U.N. Doc. A/CN.4/L.11
and Corr.1 (in Ybk,
1951, vII)
- ILC Report, A/1858
(A/6/9), 1951, chp. III, par.43 |
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Proposal by Mr. M.J.M. Yepes
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U.N. Doc. A/CN.4/L.12
(in Ybk,
1951, vII)
- ILC Report, A/1858
(A/6/9), 1951, chp. III, par.42 |
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Definition of aggresson - Text tentatively adopted by
the Commission at its 95th meeting, 4 June 1951 - incorporated
in footnote 1 of A/CN.4/SR.96
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U.N. Doc. A/CN.4/L.13
(in Ybk,
1951, vI) |
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Memorandum presented by Mr. Georges Scelle
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U.N. Doc. A/CN.4/L.19
and Corr.1 (in Ybk,
1951, vII)
- ILC Report, A/1858
(A/6/9), 1951, chp. III, par.53 |
| H.
Reports of the International Law Commission |
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1. Report
of the International Law Commission on the work of its third
session, 16 May to 27 July 1951
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The Commission took as a basis for consideration the text
submitted by Mr. Alfaro as it was the broadest definition
before the Commission. Although the definition was amended
and refined following discussion, some members considered
it still to be unsatisfactory as it did not comprehend
all conceivable acts of aggression and that it might prove
to be dangerously restrictive of the necessary freedom
of action of the organs of the United Nations, if they
were called upon in the future to apply the definition
to specific cases. The definition was rejected by 7 votes
to 3. A proposal not to abandon attempts at defining aggression
was likewise defeated in a vote. The Commission did, however,
decide to continue discussing the topic within the context
of the preparation of the Draft Code of Offences against
the Peace and Security of Mankind, and therefore included
among the offences defined in the draft code any act of
aggression and any threat of aggression.
- Discussion in plenary: 92nd,
93rd,
94th, 95th
and 96th
mtgs (30 May to 5 June 1951),
108th and 109th
mtgs (21 to 22 June 1951),
127th, 128th
and
129th mtgs (18 to 20 July), and 133rd
mtg (26 July 1951)
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ILC Report, A/1858
(A/6/9), 1951, chp. III, paras.35-53
- Ybk,
1951, vII
- Ybk,
1951, vI
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| I.
General Assembly Action |
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| J.
Final Outcome |
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ILC Report, A/1858
(A/6/9), 1951, chp. III, paras.35-53
- Ybk,
1951, vII |
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Res.
599 (VI) of 31 January 1952 (E,
F,
S,
R,
C)
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Concluded that it was both "possible and desirable,
with a view to ensuring international peace and security
and to developing international criminal law, to define
aggression by reference to the elements which constitute
it."1
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1. See the summary
for this topic for a discussion of subsequent activities under
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Main page
> Research Guide >
Analytical Guide > Question
of Defining Aggression
