Global Governance, Power & Security, Russia Putin tried to break the international order — it will hold him accountable

Russian President Vladimir Putin has a history of manipulating international law and institutions to advance his imperial ambitions and break the post-World War II order. After the failures to stop him in Georgia and Crimea, Putin has underestimated their power and resilience. His brazen breach of the most fundamental rule prohibiting aggressive war has backfired. Today, the post-WWII international order is stronger than ever, and international law will hold Putin to account.

Law has been but a toy for Putin since he studied it in St. Petersburg during the Soviet era. In 2008, he sent Russian troops to Georgia, claiming the legal right of self-defense in response to non-existent Georgian aggression. He justified his 2014 annexation of Crimea on a twisted version of the international law rule self-determination — the same rule that gave Kosovo, East Timor and South Sudan their independence. His current conquest similarly distorts the law yet again. He recognized the separatist Ukrainian regions of Luhansk and Donetsk as independent nations and entered into “treaties” with their self-appointed leaders, to manufacture an “invitation” for Russian troops to enter Ukraine. He was well on his way to breaking the international system. 

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