The Use of Force in Practice: 1945-2020

The dataset on “The Use of Force in Practice: 1945-2020” provides a comprehensive compilation of data about how international law related to the prohibition of force has been invoked regarding armed conflicts between 1945 – 2020. It covers the claims (legal and non-legal) that actors (states as well as non-state actors) have invoked as justifications for the participation in these conflicts under the jus contra bellum. The dataset also explores the substance of disputes, as well as international reactions to these conflicts. The dataset contains data of 81 major conflicts with an international dimension fought between 1945 to 2020 and provides a detailed assessment of the justifications invoked by overall 320 parties to these conflicts. The list of conflicts is available as Annex I. The raw data is compiled in 81 case notes (Annex IV). The analytical grid for the analysis of conflicts (Annex II) and the codebook (Annex III) are available. The data is compiled in a Microsoft Excel file (Annex V) and is presented in two ways. Table 1 presents the data actor-focused, i.e. structured regarding the 320 identified conflict parties. For each conflict party, we present the claims advanced, categorize the disputes regarding those claims, and the international reactions towards the conflict party’s claims and behavior. Table 2 presents the data in a conflict-focused way. For each of the 81 conflicts, we aggregate the claims, disputes, and international reactions. The rules for data aggregation are detailed in the codebook. When using the data, always cite: Christian Marxsen and Florian Kriener, The Use of Force in Practice: 1945-2020, British Yearbook of International Law (2026). The data was collected between 2018 and 2023 at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law by researchers of the Max Planck Research Group “Shades of Illegality in International Peace and Security Law”, led by Christian Marxsen.

《实战中的武力使用：1945-2020》（The Use of Force in Practice: 1945-2020）数据集全面汇编了1945年至2020年间，国际社会在各类武装冲突中援引与武力禁止相关的国际法的相关数据。本数据集涵盖了行为体（国家及非国家行为体）为依据禁止使用武力法（jus contra bellum）证明自身参与此类武装冲突的正当性而援引的法律及非法律性质的主张。本数据集同时探讨了相关争端的实质内容，以及国际社会对这些冲突的反应。本数据集涵盖了1945年至2020年间81场具有国际层面的重大武装冲突的相关数据，并对总计320个冲突参与方援引的正当性理由进行了详细评估。冲突清单详见附件一（Annex I）。原始数据被整理为81份案件记录（附件四，Annex IV）。本数据集同时提供冲突分析框架（附件二，Annex II）与编码手册（附件三，Annex III）。数据以微软Excel（Microsoft Excel）文件形式汇编（附件五，Annex V），并通过两种方式呈现：表1以行为体为核心编排数据，即依据已识别的320个冲突参与方进行结构化组织。针对每个冲突参与方，本数据集将展示其提出的主张、对相关主张的争端分类，以及国际社会对该参与方主张与行为的反应。表2则以冲突为核心呈现数据，针对81场冲突中的每一场，汇总其相关主张、争端及国际社会反应。数据汇总规则详见编码手册。使用本数据集时，请务必引用以下文献：克里斯蒂安·马克森（Christian Marxsen）与弗洛里安·克里纳（Florian Kriener），《实战中的武力使用：1945-2020》，《英国国际法年刊》（British Yearbook of International Law）（2026）。本数据集于2018年至2023年间，由马克斯·普朗克比较公法与国际法研究所（Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law）下属的“国际和平与安全法中的非法性形态”（Shades of Illegality in International Peace and Security Law）研究组（由克里斯蒂安·马克森牵头）的研究人员收集完成。