Abstract

Across the past eight decades, the international community has experienced successive “waves” of atrocity accountability—periods in which global norms either strengthened or eroded in the face of mass violence, authoritarian resurgence, and geopolitical disruption. These waves, first articulated by David Crane, trace the arc of humanity’s struggle to restrain the worst impulses of power. Today, the world stands at the threshold of a fourth wave: the Age of Aggression, a moment defined by the collapse of long-standing restraints, the rise of strongman politics, and the open defiance of the United Nations Charter by powerful states—including the United States itself. Its actions against Venezuela threaten other UN member states in the Western Hemisphere—Colombia, Cuba, and Greenland (Denmark).

This contribution outlines the four waves of accountability, analyzes their significance, and assesses the grave implications of a world in which aggression is once again normalized as a tool of statecraft.

Keywords: global norms, atrocity accountability, statecraft