‘Russian International Law’: An Imperialist Approach?

Keynote speech by Lauri Malksoo, 2023-2024 Paris IAS fellow, as part of the symposium "Russia, Imperialism, and International Law" organized by the University of Kiel, Germany.

The Walther Schücking Institute for International Law at the University of Kiel, Germany, will host a Symposium on ‘Russia, Imperialism, and International Law’ on 14-16 September 2023.

Since 24 February 2022, Russia has been leading an open war of aggression against Ukraine. By calling this war a 'military special operation' and expressly denying Ukraine full sovereignty, Russia appears to be re-enacting a framework known from the heyday of Imperialism. This symposium explores this retreat to an imperialist template as an opportunity to critically analyse Russia's policy in the post-Soviet space through the lense of international law. Participants will discuss Russia's past and present attempts to (re-)establish its dominance and control in the post-Soviet sphere, with a specific focus on geopolitical (e.g., the concept of the 'near abroad'), nationality-related (e.g., passportisation), and economic 'tools of imperialism'.

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