Plato’s Republic and the Just War Theory Versus...

American involvement in humanitarian intervention is one of the most controversial issues in contemporary US foreign policy. The definition of humanitarian intervention is a military intervention; entering into a country for the purposes of saving lives and protecting citizens from the violation of their human rights. As in all debates, there are always two sides. One side disputes that military force should only be applied when, in the words of former Secretary of Defense Weinberger, ‘a vital national interest is at stake.’  ¹ The opposing side disputes that the US should apply military force to mediate when in the words of former president Clinton, â€Å"someone comes after innocent civilians†¦and it is in our power to stop it, we will stop†¦show more content†¦Declaring war without sufficient reason is wrong. These reasons include self-defense against an act of aggression, and defense of others against an aggressor nation. In humanitarian intervention , you would be defending another people from an aggressor nation, making it a justifiable act. The second condition is that war must be declared by a proper authority, a representative of a nation; a king for example. Declaring was is a matter for governments, so neither you nor I can declare war. Some circumstances do arise when it is unclear if that authority is representing the people or themselves. For example, a dictator King who rules by fear does not represent his people, meaning that his declaration of war is questionable. For the military intervention to occur, a declaration from the government must be made. If a war is to be just then the third condition that must be satisfied is that it must be done with the right intentions. If a nation’s real reason for war is only to further its own interests, or to get back at an enemy, then that war is not considered just. With the just war theory, the only true was to have right intentions is for peace to be the desired outcome. The purpose of humanitarian intervention is to save and protect inferior foreign people, showing that the intentions are right. A fourth condition for a just war is that there