The formation of criminal liability for the crime of aggression in international law at the end of the XIX - first half of the XX century

The subject of this study is an act of aggression as a crime, according to the provisions of international criminal and international humanitarian law. The article examines in detail the prerequisites for the formation of legal, in particular, international legal responsibility for the commission of acts of aggression. The author believes that the end of the XIX century became the starting point for the development of legal responsibility for the conduct of aggressive wars, as well as the nature of their conduct. Special attention is paid to the fact that the provisions enshrined in the Charter and the Verdict of the Nuremberg Tribunal have become imperative norms of international law in terms of fixing international crimes, as well as the principles of responsibility for their commission. It is separately noted that the verdict of the Tribunal became an act of increased strength of the people against the commission of crimes of aggression. The research methodology includes the use of such methods of legal science as historical, formal legal, systemic, as well as methods of analysis and dialectics. The novelty of this study lies in the fact that the work is a comprehensive detailed study of the process of establishing international criminal responsibility for the crime of aggression in the period from the end of the XIX century to the first half of the XX century. The author analyzes the historical and legal aspects of this process, considering various international documents, agreements and events of that time. The special contribution of the author of the study is expressed in the fact that based on an extensive analysis, the author, through the prism of legal doctrines, international norms and historical reality of the time period under consideration, draws conclusions about what factors influenced the development of understanding of the crime of aggression and why the legal status of criminal responsibility in this area began to form at that time.