Treść książki

Przejdź do opcji czytnikaPrzejdź do nawigacjiPrzejdź do informacjiPrzejdź do stopki
beincorporatedforthwithintotheUSSR.3
Russia’sarmedaggressionagainstUkrainethuswenthand
inhandwithRussianaggressionagainstinternationallaw.
And,whileitisonlynaturalthattypicalpartiestoapolitical
conflictwillalwaystrytopushargumentsforthelegality
oftheirmoves,theRussiangovernment’sactivitiesrelating
toCrimeaactuallytranscendtheboundsofbuildingalegal
caseandassuchcanberegardedasaform
of“internationallawtrolling”,seekingtoundermine,
relativiseanddestroytheinternationallegalorder.Fromthis
viewpoint,themostdestructiveargumentinvokedbyRussia
tojustifyitsactionagainstUkrainewasitscitingofearlier
examplesofinternational-lawtransgressions.
Andso,Russiahaspressedon(asforexampleinPresident
VladimirPutin’spronouncementsof2014)withtheclaim
that,givenotherstates’violationsofinternationallaw
inthepast,Russiaalsohastherighttosuch
violations4.Inthiscontext,comparisonsweremadebetween
Russia’spolicytowardsUkraineontheonehand,and
ontheothertheuseofforceoverKosovo,and/ortheIraq
interventionbytheUnitedStatesanditsallies.Itcan
beseenhowthisargumentseekstodestroythereference
pointfromwhichtoassesstheextentandscaleofRussia’s
violationsofinternationalnormsinconnectionwith
theaggressionagainstUkraineandannexationofCrimea.
Ifinternationallawsarebeingviolated,Russiaargues,then
thismeansthatthesenormsdonotwork.Andiftheydonot
work,Russiacannotbeaccusedofviolatingthem.This
isanattempttolegitimiseunlawfulactionsviaanalogywith
precedent-settingviolations,butthisreasoninginvolves
afallacy.Russiaafterallcannotarguesimultaneouslythat
theKosovoandIraqinterventionsviolatedtheinternational
legalorderandthattheCrimeaannexationwasinkeeping
withthatorder.
AnothermeansofinternationallawtrollingbytheRussian
governmenthasentailedthereleaseintothepublic
domainofstatementsthatareevidentlyuntrue.One
examplemightbetheassertionthatRussiahasnever
contravenedtheso-calledBudapestMemorandum,asmade
bySergeiLavrov,ForeignMinisteroftheRussianFederation,
atapressconferenceheldon26January2016:“Ifyou’re