Regional Organisations and the Development of Collective Security

This book examines the development of collective security by regional organizations particularly after the Cold War. It analyzes the various constitutional developments that have occurred within regional arrangements such as ECOWAS, African Union, SADC, OAS, and NATO, and critically analyzes how these developments have propelled regional organizations to depart from the normative framework of regional arrangement contained in Chapter VIII of the UN Charter. Through a comprehensive examination of practice, the book evaluates the impact of regional organizations’ newly asserted powers to authorize enforcement action and determine when situations within member states warrant their intervention. It inquires into the legal justifications for these developments both from within the UN Charter and regional treaties and practice and asks whether consensual intervention, that is the use of force by regional organizations on the basis of their members’ consent, impinges on, or constitutes an exception to, the prohibition of the use or threat of force under Article 2(4) of the Charter. The book also analyzes the regime of complimentarity between the UN and regional organizations.