Public Law Studies Quarterly

The Nature and Concept of Plundering Natural Resources in Armed Conflicts from the Perspective of International Law

Document Type : Article

Authors

Zahra Hasanjanzadeh 1
Ali Mashhadi 2
Mohsen Ghadir 3

1 Ph.D. Student in International Law, Faculty of Law, University of Qom, Qom, Iran. ‎

2 Associate Prof., Faculty of Law, University of Qom, Qom, Iran‎

3 Assistant Prof., Faculty of Law, University of Qom, Qom, Iran‎

https://doi.org/10.22059/jplsq.2023.362502.3358
Abstract
The phenomenon of the plundering of natural resources in armed conflicts is considered one of the serious current threats to the environment and a danger to peace and security within countries and in the international arena. There has long been a close dependency and connection between natural resources and armed conflicts. This bidirectional relationship has resulted in irreparable damage to natural resources during conflicts, as well as putting human lives at risk. This paper, using a descriptive-analytical approach, aims to outline a desirable perspective in explaining the conceptual scope of the phenomenon of plunder and, by evaluating international law regulations in this area, seeks to find an appropriate model to minimize the damages caused by this phenomenon. In this regard, recent efforts by the International Law Convention to address the issue of plunder in the draft provisions for the protection of the environment in armed conflicts in 2022 are also considered and examined. An analysis of existing rules confirms the reality that, despite the abundance of international regulations in this area, these rules appear to be insufficient in practice and have not provided the necessary legal mechanisms to effectively combat this phenomenon.

Keywords

international law
the law of armed conflicts
International Law Commission
the pillage of natural resources
Subjects

  1. English

    1. A) Books
    2. Christiansen, S. M. (2015). Climate Conflicts - A Case of International Environmental and Humanitarian Law. Springer International Publishing.
    3. Dam-De Jong, D. (2015). International Law and Governance of Natural Resources in Conflict and Post-Conflict Situations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
    4. Dienelt, A. (2022). Armed Conflicts and the Environment Complementing the Laws of Armed Conflict with Human Rights Law and International Environmental Law. Switzerland: Springer.
    5. Murray, Daragh(ed) et al. (2016). Practitioners’ Guide to Human Rights Law in Armed Conflict. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
    6. Sassoli, M. (2019). International Humanitarian Law: Rules, Controversies, and Solutions to Problems Arising in Warfare. Massachusetts: Edward Elgar Publishing.
    7. Stahn, C. et al. (2017). Environmental Protection and Transitions from Conflict to Peace. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

     

    1. B) Articles
    2. Berdal, M., & Keen, D. (1997). Violence and Economic Agendass in Civil Wars: Some Policy Implications. Journal of International Studies, 26(3), 795-818.
    3. Dam-de Jong (2009). International Law and Resource Plunder: The Protection of Natural Resources during Armed Conflict. Yearbook of International Environmental Law, 19(1), 27–57, https://doi.org/10.1093/yiel/19.1.27.
    4. Keenan, P. J. (2014). Conflict Minerals and the Law of Pillage. Chicago Journal of International Law: 14(2), Article 6. Available at https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/cjil/vol14/iss2/6.
    5. Le Billon, Philippe (2001). “The political ecology of war: natural resources and armed conflicts”,

    Political Geography, Volume 20, Issue 5, Pages 561-584.

    1. Lundberg, M. A. (2008). The Plundering of Natural Resources during War: A War Crime(?). Georgetown Journal of International Law, 39(3), 495-526.
    2. Okowa, Phoebe (2013). “Sovereignty Contests and the Protection of Natural Resources in Conflict Zones”, Current Legal Problems, Vol. 66, pp. 33-73.
    3. Tyagi, Y. (2015). Permanent sovereignty over natural resources. Cambridge Journal of International and Comparative Law, 4(3), 588-615.
    4. Viko, I. J., et al. (2021). Natural Resources and Armed Conflict in Nigeria: The Legal Perspective. African Journal of Law and Human Rights, 5(1), 225-236. HeinOnline.

     

    1. C) Documents
    2. Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions, 1977.
    3. African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, 1981.
    4. Agreement for the Prosecution and Punishment of the Major War Criminals of the European Axis, and Charter of the International Military Tribunal. London, 8 August 1945.
    5. Convention (I) for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field. Geneva, 12 August 1949, Commentary of 2016.
    6. Convention (IV) relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War. Geneva, 12 August 1949.
    7. Convention (IV) respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land and its annex: Regulations concerning the Laws and Customs of War on Land. The Hague, 18 October 1907.
    8. General Assembly Resolution, Recommendations concerning international respect of the right of the peoples and nations to self-determination, A_RES_1314(XIII)-EN,1958.
    9. International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 16 December 1966.
    10. International Law Commission, Draft principles on protection of the environment in relation to armed conflicts, with commentaries, 2022.
    11. International Law Commission (ILC), Draft Conclusions on Identification of Customary International Law, with Commentaries, Report on the Work of its 70th session, 2018.
    12. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), WGII AR5 Summary for Policymakers, 2014.
    13. Instructions for the Government of Armies of the United States in the Field (Lieber Code). 24 April 1863.
    14. Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States, Montevideo, 1933.
    15. Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and Relating to the Protection of Victims of Non-International Armed Conflicts (Protocol II), 1977.
    16. Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), 2002.
    17. Security Council Resolution, S/RES/1625, 14 September 2005.
    18. Statute of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, 25 May 1993.
    19. United Nations Charter, 1945.
    20. United Nations Environment Programme, Protecting the Environment During Armed Conflict, An Inventory and Analysis of International Law. 2009.
    21. United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, 2011.
    22. Universal Declaration of Human Rights, General Assembly, 1948.

     

    1. D) Cases

    47.Case Concerning Armed Activities on the Territory of the Congo (Democratic Republic of the Congo v. Uganda), ICJ, Judgement, 19 December 2005.

     

    References in Persian:

    1. Books
    2. Kolb, R., & Hyde, R. (2014). An Introduction to the International Law of Armed Conflicts. Translated by Lesani, Seyed Hesamodin, Tehran: Majd (In Persian).
    3. Mrema, E. M., Bruch, C., & Diamond, J. (2014). Protecting the Environment During Armed Conflict: an Inventory and Analysis of International Law. Translated by Hossein Azad, Seyed Ali, Mohammadi, Mehrdad, Tehran: Shahre Danesh (In Persian).
    4. Momtaz, J., Rangebarian, A. H. (2013). Humanitarian International Law Internal Armed Conflict. 4th Edition, Tehran: Mizan Publications (In Persian).

     

    1. B) Articles
    2. Askary, P. (2022). Protection of the Environment in Armed Conflicts From the Perspective of the International Law Commission and the International Committee of the Red Cross. International Law Review, 39(67), 141-169 (In Persian).
    3. Gholipour, G., Mahra, N. (2020). Crime of Ecocide; Past, Present and Future. Journal of Criminal Law Reserch, 8 (30), 43-81 (In Persian).
    4. Husseini, M. R. (2017). The Mechanism of Blocking Financial Resources of Terrorist Groups in Light of International Law Documents (Case Study: ISIS). Quarterly Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies on Strategic Knowledge, 8(32), 113-131 (In Persian).
    5. Mirabbasi, S. B., Eghbali, K. (2023). The Necessity of Limiting the Absolute Sovereignty of States Over Natural Resources in Light of Sustainable Development. Public Law Studies Quarterly, 53(2) (In Persian).
    6. Mizan Online News Agency, 18 March 2016, available at http://www.mizanonline.ir/fa/news/149188 (In Persian).
    7. Momeni Rad, A., Khodaparast, N. (2016). The Seizure of Fossil Resources from the View of Humanitarian International Law, 46(3), 559-579 (In Persian).
    8. Piri, H. (2022). Martens Clause and Environmental Protection in Armed Conflicts; Emphasizing on the 2019 Draft Principles of International Law Commission. Legal Research Quarterly, 26(102), 349-373 (In Persian).
    9. Raminnia, M., Nazerian, M. (2017). Self-contained regimes, Unity or plurality of International Law. Moahede(Treaty) Legal Research Quarterly, 2(5), 63-85 (In Persian).
Public Law Studies Quarterly
Volume 55, Issue 3 - Serial Number 43
Autumn 2025
Autumn 2025
Pages 1677-1702

  • Receive Date 18 July 2023
  • Revise Date 28 October 2023
  • Accept Date 23 December 2023

Home

Journal Process Ethics

Peer Review Process

Submission

Indexing and Abstracting

Contact Us