Launch of the Seventh Report on the EU Guidelines on Promoting Compliance with International Humanitarian Law
Good afternoon everyone,
I would like to thank the Hungarian Presidency for inviting me to participate in this event to discuss the 7th Annual Report on the implementation of the EU Guidelines on Promoting Compliance with International Humanitarian Law (IHL).
It is very timely. Today, across more than 120 conflicts and many crises worldwide, reports of IHL violations abound. There is a growing defiance for the rules of warfare and somehow a growing acceptance for civilian casualties and damage is growing worldwide.
Children casualties are the most blatant manifestation of IHL violations, for who could genuinely claim respecting the principles of distinction and precautions in attack when so many children fall victim. But also, women, humanitarian workers and journalists.
To counter these trends, it is all the more important that our voice of principled support to IHL be heard, and that our actions be made visible and meaningful.
IHL violations cannot go unnoticed. We cannot let them become the new normal. We must make clear, through our words and deeds, that IHL violations are the deplorable and condemnable exceptions to the rule. For wars, indeed, have rules.
Wars have been fought for centuries, worldwide. Generations after generations, men - mainly men - have taken arms to expand territory or power, or out of fear, be it perceived or genuine.
Wars, as it appears, are human. Yet, too often, they fail to be humane.
There is only one letter difference, but that one letter impacts the life, well-being and dignity of many people around the world. That one letter is at the core of IHL.
Modern IHL was born from the realisation that humanity is oftentimes a casualty of war.
We have long known that despite efforts to preserve peace and to prevent armed conflicts, wars will not always be averted. In order to minimise their impact on civilians and to ensure that fundamental principles of humanity and dignity are preserved, IHL sets limits to how wars are waged. It protects civilians, and ensures the unimpeded delivery of life-saving humanitarian aid.
All parties to a conflict, including both States and non-State armed groups, have an obligation to respect and ensure respect for the universally accepted rules and principles of IHL, in all circumstances.
The EU’s commitment to IHL is not new. The promotion of international law and human dignity is enshrined in our founding treaties. The EU Guidelines on promoting compliance with IHL, adopted in 2005 and updated in 2009, set out a range of operational tools available to the EU to promote compliance with IHL in its relations with the rest of the world.
The EU uses its political and economic leverage to encourage adherence to humanitarian principles. Its tools include statements, political dialogues, and demarches, as well as support for and cooperation with international organisations - such as the ICC, ICRC, UNICEF or UNRWA.
The EU also uses regimes of restrictive measures to prevent or respond to IHL violations.
Yet, more needs to be done. Around the world today, lives are lost and human dignity is violated, not for lack of rules, but due to a failure to respect existing rules.
I will insist on three points: we need 1/ knowledge, 2/ good faith, and 3/ accountability.
1/ Knowledge. One reason why IHL may be ignored or violated is if its rules are unknown, or misunderstood. Disseminating the rules of IHL, including to armed forces, non-State actors and civilians, is a challenging but essential prerequisite for its implementation. IHL must be ingrained in all segment of societies: from schools to courts, from legal advisers to the military.
The crucial role of training and education is highlighted in the resolution recently adopted by the 34th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent.
It is the primary responsibility of States, but the EU endeavours to keep IHL on the agenda through funding training programmes (ICRC and Geneva Call), through public diplomacy, and through its civilian and military missions.
In this context, the EU Human Rights and IHL Due Diligence Policy on Security Sector Support to third parties (HRDDP) is worth highlighting. Adopted in February 2024, the policy spells out core principles and defines concrete actions to ensure that EU security sector support, including in the context of CSDP and CFSP missions and operations, is in compliance with human rights law and IHL. To support the operationalisation of this policy, the EU is finalising “implementation guidelines”, providing detailed and practical guidance on risk assessment, both at strategic and operational levels, and possible mitigation measures.
Those instruments illustrate our commitment to defend and implement international law. They are also important for enhancing the EU’s own coherence and consistency, as we need to abide ourselves by the same principles and obligations that we are advocating to our partners.
More knowledge is also needed of IHL violations themselves, to identify patterns if any, to refine training programmes, to improve military strategies and operations as well as humanitarian action, and for possible accountability purposes. Initiatives that seek to collect and aggregate data, by independent institutions, including academia, could be fostered.
Knowledge of the rules does not suffice. They must also be implemented in 2/ good faith.
IHL’s legitimacy require that its principles be applied ad initio, as an IHL reflex, in the planning and conduct of hostilities, rather than ex post, to legitimise actions through a distorted prism.
Good faith interpretation, common sense and humanity are elementary requirements for the principles of distinction, necessity and proportionality to produce their intended effects. The genuine aim of preserving civilian life and dignity must always guide the choice of means and methods of warfare.
The same considerations must also guide our approach to emerging technologies. As we celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions, the continued relevance of IHL goals, rules and principles must be reiterated.
Current conflicts illustrate a growing reliance on weapon systems with varying levels of autonomy, but also on systems that integrate AI into military decision making. The use of technologies for tasks traditionally performed by humans must not imply the dehumanisation of warfare. Preserving human responsibility and accountability, ensuring appropriate human control and implementing risk mitigation measures will be essential. For the EU, it is imperative that weapons, whether they are low tech or high tech, and no matter how autonomous they may be, continue to respect International Law, and IHL in particular.
On Monday last week, the EU and its Member States adopted a declaration on a Common Understanding of the Application of International Law to Cyberspace. We reiterated the view that international law, including IHL, is fit for purpose in the digital age.
As many essential civilian services are increasingly reliant on outer-space systems (e.g. hospitals), the potential human cost of military space operations becomes increasingly worrisome. There too, the EU stresses that international law, including IHL, is fully applicable.
As IHL is being challenged, both in practice and in the face of new technologies, respect for IHL must become a political priority, at global, regional and domestic levels. The EU welcomes initiatives such as the ICRC High-level initiative on IHL, which precisely seeks to galvanise political commitment.
To be effective, it is crucial that such commitment translates into action.
This brings me to my third and last point: 3/ accountability. Accountability spreads restraint, compliance and faith in a rules-based order where everyone is equal before the law. Impunity spreads distrust and weakens the multilateral system. It is essential that we, including the EU, hold all parties to the same standards.
The law must prevail beyond politics or emotions.
The pain of the victims, whether it occurs in Ukraine, Israel, Gaza, Ethiopia, Myanmar, Sudan or elsewhere should resonate with us, not because of our history, our culture, our traditions or our faith, but because of our shared humanity.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, there has been renewed momentum and mobilisation on accountability, although we are still far from justice being served. The same mobilisation should prevail for conflicts in other parts of the world. The credibility of the international criminal justice system depends on it.
The EU is wholly committed to fighting impunity and to promoting international criminal law and justice. The EU and its Member States, which are all parties to the Rome Statute, have to support the International Criminal Court and defend it. We also continue to advocate for the universality of the Rome Statute.
To conclude, we must not forget the origins of the rules-based international order. After the Second World War, the international community established the multilateral system and adopted rules in order to protect ourselves, against ourselves and our lowest instincts. We now possess means of destruction that could hurt humanity as such.
Almost 80 years after the end of WWII, 75 years after the adoption of the Geneva Conventions, and, as the UN General Assembly’s 6th Committee just approved the opening of negotiations on an international convention on the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity, let’s renew our commitment to have humanity prevail.