The Attribution Problem as a Tool of Lawfare

Abstract

International law prescribes conditions for attribution of private persons' conduct to a state. If those conditions are not met, the state shall not be responsible for actions of individuals. This attribution problem may be misused by states for denial of their responsibility. The following article approaches this phenomenon by using the concept of lawfare. Lawfare describes misuses of international law as a weapon to achieve military advantage. The article assesses legal and factual, short-term and long-term responses to counter this practice.