The future of international law in light of the Russian-Ukraine conflict
Published on: 13 December 2022, 06:05 pm
An analysis of the order of the International Court of Justice on Provisional Measures in the ongoing Ukraine-Russian conflict points at the ineffectiveness of international law and its instrumentalities.
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IN the past two years, apart from the havoc and destruction wrecked by the pandemic, which has had its ramifications on international law and polity across the globe, there has also been a shift in the overall relevance and utility of international law. As the age-long debate – "is international law a true law?" – takes over and becomes increasingly more relevant, incidents in the recent past have increasingly highlighted the drawbacks of international law and hinted at its inefficacy and increasing irrelevance.
“As we complete 100 days of the war, the number of civilian (and even combatant) causalities, mass graves, and possible 13,000 incidents of war crimes in the territory of Ukraine raises questions as to the effectiveness of the ICJ order. Russia's absence from the oral proceedings, rejecting the jurisdiction of the ICJ, and blatant disregard to not comply with the said order signifies that the ICJ order is not final and effective.
Not only has international law through its instrumentalities such as the United Nations ('UN') (and its subsequent organs, especially the International Court of Justice ('ICJ')) failed to serve its purpose (mentioned in Article 1 of the UN Charter), their action (and often, inaction) has left much to be desired. The need of the hour, it seems, is to work towards a reimagined world order, and find a confluence of international relations and international law in the global sphere to ensure peace, security, cooperation and stability for future generations.