Q&A;: Qualification of situations - U.S. and Pakistan

The low threshold for an International Armed Conflict (IAC) is met when there is a dispute between two states that leads to the intervention of their armed forces. The question of whether there is a dispute between the two states is therefore an essential component of the conflict classification analysis. In the case of the Bin Laden raid, the US forces entered Pakistan to use force against a non-state group, not against the state of Pakistan. I would therefore classify the situation as part of the ongoing NIAC between the U.S. and al Qaeda because the U.S. was taking action against al Qaeda, not against Pakistan. In contrast, when Russian forces entered Crimea, they were taking action against the state of Ukraine, not against a non-state group. In my view, there is an important distinction with regard to against whom the state is using force, and therefore if a state is using force against a non-state group located in the territory of another state, it is not automatically an IAC because there is not a dispute between the two states and the armed forces of the two states are not involved against each other. However, this issue remains in dispute and some international lawyers consider that the situation you describe would constitute an IAC between the U.S. and Pakistan, so it is not a clear-cut issue.

About the author
Laurie R. Blank is a Clinical Professor of Law and the Director of the International Humanitarian Law Clinic at Emory University School of Law.