Environmental Protection During Armed Conflict: Can It Attain The Status Of Jus Cogens?
- IJLLR Journal
- May 22
- 1 min read
Karun Kumar P, LLM, Department of Legal Studies, University of Madras
ABSTRACT
The intersection of armed conflict and environmental degradation presents one of the most pressing yet underexplored frontiers of contemporary international law. Armed conflicts have historically caused devastating and often irreversible damage to ecosystems, natural resources, and the broader environment. Despite the existence of treaty-based and customary rules offering partial protection, the legal framework governing environmental protection during armed conflict remains fragmented, underenforced, and hierarchically subordinate to other norms of international humanitarian law. This article examines whether environmental protection norms applicable during armed conflict have attained, or possess the potential to attain, the status of jus cogens Drawing upon the foundational doctrines of international environmental law, international humanitarian law, and the evolving jurisprudence of international tribunals—including the landmark 2024 Advisory Opinion of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) on climate obligations—this article argues that while a categorical elevation of all environmental norms to peremptory status remains premature, strong doctrinal foundations exist to recognise at least a core of environmental obligations as jus cogens in character. The analysis further demonstrates that a lex generalis of environmental protection, rooted in jus cogens, would necessarily supersede conflicting lex specialis arrangements, thereby fundamentally reconfiguring the normative architecture of armed conflict law.
Keywords: Jus Cogens, International Humanitarian Law, Environmental Protection, Armed Conflict, Ecocide, Lex Generalis, ITLOS Advisory Opinion, Customary International Law, Peremptory Norms.
