Arms Transfers and International Law (CRS Report for Congress)
| Release Date |
July 29, 2024 |
| Report Number |
LSB11211 |
| Report Type |
Legal Sidebar |
| Authors |
Karen Sokol |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
Summary:
The ongoing conflicts between Russia and Ukraine and between Israel and Hamas have prompted
questions about the international legal obligations of states that provide arms to parties to a conflict.
Several cases, for example, have been brought in international and domestic courts (including one in a
U.S. district court) alleging that countries’ provision of arms to Israel since it launched its military
campaign in Gaza in response to the October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack violates those countries’
obligations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Genocide
Convention) and the Geneva Conventions. The questions raised about the extent to which these
international law obligations apply to arms transfers may be of interest to Congress because of its roles in
determining whether and how the United States implements its international legal obligations and in
authorizing, restricting, and overseeing executive branch decisions regarding the provision of U.S. arms
to foreign states. This Legal Sidebar (1) discusses the obligations under the Genocide and Geneva
Conventions that may be relevant to arms transfers, (2) explicates the extent to which these obligations
are incorporated into the U.S. legal and policy framework governing the process of providing U.S.
weapons to foreign states, and (3) highlights some issues raised by the foregoing of relevance for
Congress in light of its legislative and oversight authorities regarding the provision of U.S. weapons to
foreign states.
