War as Punishment: Historical Foundations and Current State

Abstract

The article considers punishment as a source of legitimization of war. The author traces the history of punitive paradigm of war, notes the moment when it was replaced by the legalist paradigm and considers the reactualization of the idea of punishment as a just basis of war. In order to deal with these issues, the author considers the formation of the punitive doctrine of war in the writings of Christian authors of the III–IV centuries. He analyzes the logic of justifying the war that appeared in the thoughts of Ambrose of Milan and Augustine Aurelius. Both theologians indicated the necessity to punish sin as a key cause of war. Next, the process of secularization of the doctrine of just war in Modern times is considered. During this period, the legalist paradigm of war had been developed. The right of states to protect their sovereignty and territorial integrity became most relevant just cause of war. Then, the author notes appeal to the idea of protection of human rights as a basis for justifying war, typical for the modern just war theory. Also, the revival of interest to the idea of punishment is considered and the possible reasons for the reactualization of the punitive paradigm in the turn of the XX–XXI centuries are examined.