R2P and the Emergence of Responsibilities Across Borders

Abstract

This chapter examines the nature of the international responsibilities entailed by the ‘Responsibility to Protect’ (R2P) principle and explores to what extent these responsibilities are recognized in contemporary international society. This chapter explores the nature of the ‘responsibility’ entailed by R2P, focusing on its quality (what sort of a responsibility is it?), scope (a responsibility for/to do what?) and agency (whose responsibility is it?)—questions that have been contested by scholars and states alike. Illuminating how these three elements speak to and reflect key aspects of cosmopolitan thought, this chapter outlines what a more cosmopolitan position on R2P would look like and how it adds normative sharpness to the debate surrounding the principle. The second part of the chapter asks to what extent states and other actors recognize these responsibilities in practice and behave as if there were protection responsibilities across borders. There are clear signs of an emerging recognition within international society of a shared responsibility to protect populations from atrocity crimes. Although agreement in principle does not translate neatly into agreement on how to act in specific situations, the experience of R2P does suggest the possibility of nascent and developing cosmopolitan responsibilities emerging from within the society of states.