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Abstract: As peacekeepers land in Liberia and the U.S. considers its level of involvement there, the issue of humanitarian intervention seems as pressing as ever. Similarly, recent debates over the need for UN Security Council authorization for military action in Iraq (taken partly for humanitarian reasons) and the UN role in pacifying and rebuilding that country pose fundamental questions about national sovereignty, legitimate authority and collective responsibility. To explore these matters, Northwestern University’s Center for International and Comparative Studies convened a conference of experts on humanitarian intervention in May 2003, as part of the Cantigny Conference Series sponsored by the McCormick Tribune Foundation. The forty participants included academic specialists, former diplomats and military officers, and leaders of humanitarian NGOs. This article summarizes the deliberations of these experts on the major issues posed by humanitarian intervention.
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