ABSTRACT

The human security approach is based on the idea that responding to new forms of violence is not just a military issue. This means that non-military tasks are as important as military tasks and should not be regarded as of ‘collateral utility’, and that any use of armed force not directly aimed at law enforcement should be eschewed. Such an approach does not preclude the use of force as a last resort, since several categories of limited military operations to support or enforce peace may be necessary, as when some of the combatants do not agree to cease hostilities. But it imposes severe limits on the level of intensity with which military forces should be prepared to engage. Although peacekeeping (high consent level and low force requirement) and peace enforcement (low consent level and high force requirement) may differ both in the lethality of their operations and in the capabilities they require, even when fighting cannot be avoided the objective is to enforce and build some semblance of peace. Possible military tasks also include protection of electrical installations, oil wells or industrial complexes, release of hostages, arrest of war criminals, and so forth.