On April 1–2, 2025, Harvard Law School’s Program on International Law and Armed Conflict (HLS PILAC), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Regional Delegation for the United States and Canada, and the Lieber Institute for Law & Warfare of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point co-convened a workshop at HLS titled “Respecting International Law in Armed Conflict: Challenges and Opportunities Concerning Contemporary Approaches and Future Directions.”

The workshop focused on challenges and opportunities related to upholding respect for international law in current and future armed conflicts, particularly those that may involve the United States, its allies, and its partners. Held under the Chatham House rule, the workshop provided a platform for candid and informed discussion among senior military, humanitarian, diplomatic, and academic practitioners and specialists. Some of the key topics included conflict classification, the conduct of hostilities, partnered warfare, deprivation of liberty, and humanitarian services. Participants examined issues concerning the interpretation and implementation of international humanitarian law (IHL)/the law of armed conflict (LOAC), addressing matters such as legal standards regulating proportionality in attacks, humanitarian considerations regarding new weapons of warfare, legal interoperability in joint military operations, and preventing and addressing violations. The workshop — which aimed to foster informed discussion, identify areas of consensus and further elaboration, and offer practical and principled approaches to strengthening respect for IHL/LOAC — also considered the roles of public sentiment, political authority, and international cooperation in shaping compliance with legal norms.