Aggression under the Rome Statute

This book aims to offer an in-depth analysis of the crime of aggression as covered by the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. Starting from the legal history of its inclusion in 2010, it analyses the relevant articles 8bis, 15bis and 15ter of the Rome Statute – covering the definition of the crime of aggression, the exercise of jurisdiction over the crime of aggression through State referrals and the proprio motu powers of the ICC Prosecutor, and the exercise of jurisdiction over the crime of aggression through UN Security Council referrals. Likewise, the book covers upcoming developments on the crime of aggression and the ICC post-2017. It addresses the various challenges towards activating the Court’s jurisdiction, in particular, the necessary vote required for activation, as well as the significant challenges faced by the three ways in which the Court may exercise such jurisdiction.

Table of Contents:
I. Introduction 1. Background 2. The crime of aggression in the Rome Statute: an overview 3. History of outlawing aggression under international law 4. Structure II. The crime of aggression under the Rome Statute prior to the Kampala amendments 1. The debate leading up to the “non-inclusion” of the crime of aggression in the Rome Conference 2. Developments during the Kampala Review Conference 3. Preconditions for the exercise of the Court’s jurisdiction over the crime of aggression and the legality of the amendment 4. Outlook III. Definition of the crime of aggression and the underlying act of aggression 1. The origins of the definition adopted in Kampala 2. Definition of an act of aggression and its varieties 3. Difference between an act and a crime of aggression 4. Perpetrators of the crime of aggression 5. Relationship of the crime of aggression amendments with other parts of the Rome Statute 6. Outlook IV. Treaty-based jurisdiction (Article 15 bis of the Rome Statute) 1. Exercise of jurisdiction 2. Jurisdiction Ratione Temporis 3. Activation of the Court’s treaty-based, aggression-related jurisdiction 4. The “opt-out” option of the Kampala amendment 5. The de facto reversal of the opt-out option by Resolution ICC-ASP/16/Res.5 (2017) 6. Interaction with the UN Security Council 7. Issues of jurisdiction 8. Outlook V. UN Security Council-based jurisdiction (Article 15 ter Rome Statute) 1. Exercise of jurisdiction 2. Entry into force and jurisdiction ratione temporis over the crime of aggression 3. Independence of the Court 4. Relationship with jurisdiction over other crimes 5. Outlook VI. Summary and Outlook: Crime of aggression and the ICC post-2018 Appendix 1. Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (excerpts) 2. Resolutions and understandings adopted in Kampala 3. Resolution ICC-ASP/16/Res.5 adopted on 14 December 2017 4. UN General Assembly Resolution 3314 (XXIX) of 14 December 1974 on the Definition of Aggression

About the Author :
Andreas Zimmermann is Professor and Elisa Freiburg is a Research Fellow, both at the University of Potsdam.