| The problem that this study considers is whether the contingencies of the use of force authorization, as expressed in U.N. Charter system, is effective in meeting the emerging and evolving global security threats of the 21 st century. This study looks at the problem by posing the question in specific terms: do new global security threats and challenges require changes in the way that the use of force is authorized under the current paradigm? In light of the experiences following the end of the Cold War, and particularly since the 9-11 terrorist attacks, the question is significant, timely, and relevant.; This study uses a qualitative method approach and looks at the specific question through two lenses. First, it considers several aspects of the authorization of the use of force, including the Charter system, new global security threats, the challenges posed by the notions of responsibility to protect and the doctrine of preemptive action, and United Nations reform efforts. Second, it considers these aspects by comparing them with a data assessment. This data assessment, based on a series of interviews with surveyed foreign policy elites in the U.S, the U.N., and the E.U, uses an interview questionnaire, posing a series of inquiries, which resulted in qualitative data. The assessment tests the proposed question against the overall assessment findings.; Major findings from this study include recognition of a relatively broad range of positions on the spectrum of the current framework on using force in the 21st century. There is also a general acknowledgment of new global security threats and challenges to the existing use framework and paradigm. Other significant findings include recognition of widespread support for a responsibility to protect exception, while at the same time, a wide-ranging rejection of the doctrine of preemption and preventive war. Finally, there is a common consensus for change in the structure and organization of the U.N. Charter system's authorization of the use of force to manage these new global security threats and challenges. |
