Ep 176 Ukraine and the Laws of Armed Conflict

In Ep 174, Stephanie and Craig discussed many of the international issues raised by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. They did not, however, address the “laws of armed conflict” (LOAC) (also called “international humanitarian law”) governing how armed conflicts are supposed to be fought, and creating the concept of “war crimes”. In this episode, Stephanie and Craig are joined by MGen (ret) Blaise Cathcart, Canada’s former Judge Advocate Lawyer (JAG). The JAG is the Canadian Armed Forces’ top military lawyer. They discuss the scope and application of LOAC, and drill down on a number of specific issues: can Canada be considered a “belligerent” because of the nature of its support for Ukraine; how are combatants and civilians distinguished; what are the rules on targeting of combatants as opposed to civilians; what happens to prisoners and detainees; what the implications of civilian infrastructure being bombed; and how might enforcement of these rules work. This is a deep dive on many of the matters filling the front pages of newspapers over the last two weeks.