Responsibility for Aid or Assistance in the Commission of an Internationally Wrongful Act: A Significant Risk for the European Union and its Member States?

Abstract This article examines the responsibility that international organizations and their member states may engage when they aid or assist in the commission of an internationally wrongful act. Articles 14 and 58 of the 2011 International Law Commission’s Articles on the Responsibility of International Organizations, which were based on Article 16 of the 2001 Articles on the Responsibility of States for Internationally Wrongful Acts, constitute the relevant legal framework. These provisions represent a minimum common benchmark for international organizations, such as the European Union and its member states, when deciding to deliver financial, military, technical or other forms of material support to a third party. Likewise, they cover cases of complicity that may arise where the European Union knowingly aids or assists its member states in the commission of an internationally wrongful act or vice-versa. This article argues that the requirements of this form of responsibility remain to be clarified in the practice of states and international organizations. The state of the law is such that the risks for the European Union and its member states in terms of potential responsibility for aid or assistance remain low but could be significant in the future, particularly as the organization expands its activities with external partners.