Canada was the architect of this doctrine, which is based on the idea that while the primary responsibility for the protection of a population lies with the sovereign state that governs it, in the event that this state is unable or unwilling to do so or is itself the cause of the threat, the responsibility to protect shifts to the international community of states, in other words, the United Nations.
Le Canada est le père de ce principe, fondé sur l'idée que, si un État souverain n'a pas la capacité ou la volonté de protéger sa population ou est lui-même la source de la menace, la responsabilité de protéger la population revient à la communauté internationale, c'est-à-dire aux Nations Unies.