UNIVERSITY OF COLOGNE

About us

The Institute for International Peace and Security Law is dedicated to conducting research and educating on the international law of keeping and restoring peace. If understood in a broad sense, the contemporaneous international law of peace and security is based on the two main pillars of the prohibition of the use of force and its exceptions (ius contra bellum) and the law of armed conflict (ius in bello). While the ius contra bellum answers the question of whether a State may – exceptionally – use force in its international relations, the ius in bello provides the legal framework guiding military operations when an armed conflict erupts. In addition, it is discussed whether a ius post bellum also serves to secure peace. Through peace treaties and other peace-building measures, the ius post bellum creates the transitional legal remedies in the aftermath of a conflict. It is intended to stabilize and work towards a lasting peace. With a focus on international criminal law, the ius post bellum area of law is also part of the Institute's research spectrum.

The Institute was founded in 2012 and has since been directed by Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Dr. h.c. Claus Kreß. It employs a team of young researchers analyzing legal issues centered around international peace and security law in a broad sense. Theses written under the supervision of Claus Kreß and other articles on relevant legal issues are published in the Institute's series “Cologne Studies on International Peace and Security Law” by Nomos Verlag.

The international law of peace and security has rarely been as important as it is today. The various conflicts taking place around the world highlight that creating and maintaining peace is an ongoing task. This area of law is therefore undergoing a continuous process of further development, the importance of which is still underestimated on occasion. The Institute strives to contribute to developing the law through research while raising awareness on relevant issues within the German international legal landscape. To this end, annual guest lectures organized by the Institute and given by renowned speakers in memory of Hans Kelsen highlight contemporary topics of international law. They invite a broad audience to engage with keeping the peace through law.

In addition, the Institute maintains a number of collaborations at the intersection with practice in order to support efforts to implement the international law of peace and security. The expertise gathered at the Institute is multiplied on a national and an international level. In addition, both the Institute's program for visiting scholars and the affiliated 'Hans Kelsen Visiting Professorship for the History and Theory of International Law' serve to promote international exchange.

Cooperations

Further information on the founding of the Institute can be found here. A list of former members of the Institute who remain associated with us is available here.