Responsibility to Protect and Rising Asian Powers

Abstract

Responsibility to Protect (R2P) is the national and international responsibility to protect populations against mass atrocities. This article discusses prospects for the implementation of R2P objectives in a world where Asian powers rise. It focuses not only on prevention and assistance but also decisive action, the most controversial aspect of R2P, tied to the UN Security Council where China resides as a permanent member with a veto. The Indian R2P position also highlights, supplemented with some comments, on selected East Asian states. It concludes that the rise of Asian powers does not threaten the national responsibility to protect. Voluntary international assistance is not threatened, but assistance with coercive elements might be. Unless more clear criteria are established for the possible use of military force, mandates from the Security Council which allows this will probably be rare. Particularly, China will oppose interventions that may forward regime change in targeted states.