From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Warring party to military conflict
"Belligerents" redirects here. For the Australian indie pop band, see
the Belligerents
.
A
belligerent
is an individual, group, country, or other entity that acts in a hostile manner, such as engaging in
combat
. The term comes from the Latin
bellum gerere
("to wage war").
[1]
Unlike the use of
belligerent
as an adjective meaning "aggressive", its use as a noun does not necessarily imply that a belligerent country is an
aggressor
.
In times of
war
, belligerent countries can be contrasted with
neutral countries
and
non-belligerents
. However, the application of the
laws of war
to neutral countries and the responsibilities of belligerents are not affected by any distinction between
neutral countries
,
neutral powers
or
non-belligerents
.
[2]
[3]
Look up
belligerent
in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Belligerency
[
edit
]
"Belligerency" is a term used in
international law
to indicate the status of two or more entities, generally
sovereign
states, being engaged in a
war
. Wars are often fought with one or both parties to a conflict invoking the right to self-defence under
Article 51
of the
United Nations Charter
[4]
(as the
United Kingdom
did in 1982 before the start of the
Falklands War
[5]
) or under the auspices of a
United Nations Security Council
resolution (such as the
United Nations Security Council Resolution 678
, which gave legal authority for the
Gulf War
).
A state of belligerency may also exist between one or more sovereign states on one side and rebel forces, if such rebel forces are recognised as belligerents. If there is a rebellion against a constituted authority (for example, an authority recognised as such by the United Nations), and those taking part in the rebellion are not recognized as belligerents, the rebellion is an
insurgency
.
[6]
Once the status of belligerency is established between two or more states, their relations are determined and governed by the laws of war.
[7]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Present participle
bellum gerent-
(nominative singular
bellum ger?ns
).
- ^
Historian -> Timeline of U.S. Diplomatic History -> 1861-1865:The Blockade of Confederate Ports, 1861-1865], U.S. State Department. "Following the U.S. announcement of its intention to establish an official blockade of Confederate ports, foreign governments began to recognize the Confederacy as a belligerent in the Civil War. Great Britain granted belligerent status on May 13, 1861, Spain on June 17, and Brazil on August 1. Other foreign governments issued statements of neutrality."
- ^
Goldstein, Erik; McKercher, B. J. C.
Power and stability: British foreign policy, 1865-1965
, Routledge, 2003
ISBN
0-7146-8442-2
,
ISBN
978-0-7146-8442-0
.
p. 63
- ^
Chapter VII ? Action with respect to Threats to the Peace, Breaches of the Peace, and Acts of Aggression
United Nations website, 23 August 2016
- ^
Daniel K. Gibran (1997). The Falklands War: Britain Versus the Past in the South Atlantic, McFarland,
ISBN
0-7864-0406-X
.
p. 86
- ^
Oxford English Dictionary
second edition 1989 "insurgent B. n. One who rises in revolt against constituted authority; a rebel who is not recognized as a belligerent."
- ^
Chisholm, Hugh
, ed. (1911).
"Belligerency"
.
Encyclopædia Britannica
. Vol. 3 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.