USA: s militära intervention i Irak : En studie av hur Bushadministrationens agerande överensstämmer med FN stadgan

Sammanfattning: Abstract University of Växjö, School of Social Sciences Course: POC 536, Political Science 41-60 Title: The U.S. military intervention in Iraq – A study of how the intervention corresponds with the UN Charter Authors: Andreas Malmgren & Johan Schneider Supervisor: Lennart Bergfeldt Date: 2006-09-26 The aim of this essay is through a qualitative literature study examine the main arguments of the Bush administration to justify a military intervention in Iraq. The theories used to explain the actions of the U.S. are system level analysis, hegemonism and realism while the UN Charter will be applied as a normative theory. The research questions are: ■ What were the main arguments of the Bush administration for a military intervention in Iraq? ■ How do these arguments correspond to the UN Charter? U.S. claimed that Iraq was manufacturing nuclear weapons and this was threatening the security of the U.S. The administration also wanted to liberate the Iraqi people from the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein. When the U.S. could not get support through the UN they decided to act independently. According to the UN Charter, UN or its member states are not allowed to intervene in matters within the domestic jurisdiction of any state neither is it allowed to act with a pre-emptive purpose. An exceptional clausal exists if the Security Council decides it is a threat to peace or peace crimes. If a state act without the UN mandate this could undermine the UN authority. Keywords: Weapon of mass destruction, intervention, Iraq, UN Charter, Bush administration