Scotland's Potential Adoption of the International Criminal Court's Definition of the Crime of Aggression

That the Parliament notes the sacrifice made by members of the armed services from the West of Scotland and other parts of the country in theatres of war such as Iraq and Afghanistan; acknowledges debate about the legality of such conflicts; is aware that the International Criminal Court (Scotland) Act 2001 incorporated the offences contained in the 1998 Rome Statute for the Establishment of an International Criminal Court into Scots law on a unanimous vote in the Parliament and that this was done the year before the Rome Statute came into force; welcomes the resolution passed at a UN conference in Kampala in June 2010, with the consensus of all States Parties present, to incorporate into the Rome Statute a definition of the crime of aggression; notes the advice provided by legal experts in the field at a meeting held in the Parliament on 18 January 2011 that there is no legal impediment to Scotland incorporating this definition into its legislation immediately, and believes that such a move would avoid Scotland being involved in illegal wars in the future, to the benefit of armed services personnel from Scotland and the citizens of other countries, set an excellent example to the rest of the world and send the clear message that Scotland respects international law.