01 March 2023
Georgia’s Bill on Foreign Agents and the Limits of the EU’s Soft Power
On February 20, 2023, the Parliament of Georgia registered the bill "On the transparency of foreign influence"Β that introduces the category of an "agent of foreign influence" β any private legal entity which gets more than 20% of its entire budget from a "foreign force". These facially innocent "monitoring" functions harbour a potentially totalitarian instrument of control. In Georgia, which underwent Stalinist purges of the 1930s, where family members (anonymously) denounced each other to the NKVD (secret police) and innocent people were rounded and summarily executed on charges of being a "foreign agent", this rings a much louder alarm bell, than elsewhere.Β Continue reading >>
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24 February 2023
What can(βt) international criminal justice deliver for Ukraine?
One year ago, Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, committing an act of aggression in violation of the UN Charter. Many more incidents of international crimes followed, adding to an already large number of unaddressed crimes going back to 2014. While investigations are underway, the failures to pursue accountability for international crimes committed by Russia in the past still need to be addressed in this context. Continue reading >>10 February 2023
Was nutzen Panzer ohne Ziele?
Die Bundesrepublik wird Leopard-2-Kampfpanzer an Kiew liefern, ukrainische Soldaten in Deutschland trainieren sowie Exportgenehmigungen an PartnerlΓ€nder ausstellen. WΓ€hrend die russische FΓΌhrung ΓΌber die angeblich erneute Bedrohung durch deutsche Panzer fabuliert, sind deutsche EntscheidungstrΓ€ger*innen in erster Linie mit sich selbst zufrieden. In Deutschland nicht diskutiert, jedoch zentral fΓΌr alle politischen Entscheidungen in diesem Konflikt ist die Frage: UnterstΓΌtzung wofΓΌr? Continue reading >>03 February 2023
Enteignen fΓΌr den Wiederaufbau?
Jeden Tag bringt der Krieg in der Ukraine unertrΓ€gliches und unvorstellbares menschliches Leid mit sich. Vor diesem Hintergrund fΓ€llt es schwer, schon heute einen nΓΌchternen Blick auf die Zeit nach Beendigung der Kampfhandlungen in der Ukraine und einer ZurΓΌckdrΓ€ngung des russischen Aggressors zu werfen. Das allerdings scheint notwendig, um moralisierender Politik notwendige rechtsstaatliche RationalitΓ€t entgegenzusetzen. Konkret geht es dabei um die Frage, ob es mΓΆglich ist, staatliches und/oder privates russisches VermΓΆgen entschΓ€digungslos zu enteignen, um so den Wiederaufbau der Ukraine zu finanzieren. Diese Γberlegung liegt insbesondere der Erkenntnis zugrunde, dass die durch die russische Aggression verursachten SchΓ€den in der Ukraine schon jetzt auf ΓΌber eine Billion US-Dollar geschΓ€tzt werden. Continue reading >>25 January 2023
Is Criminality a Russian Virtue Worth Cultivating?
On 13 December 2022, the Russian State Duma unanimously approved, in the first reading, the bill on the imposition of Russian criminal law and criminal procedure upon the Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia provinces of Ukraine. The Bill flagrantly infringes the Russian Constitution, criminal legislation and international law, essentially transforming the occupied territories of Ukraine into a lawless area. Yet again, the Bill underscores the imperial nature of the Russian war of aggression. Continue reading >>06 January 2023
A Ukraine Special Tribunal with Legitimacy Problems?
The call for a Special Tribunal for the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine ('UkrTrib') is also getting louder in the German political discourse. The proposal goes back to an initiative by the British international lawyer and writer Philippe Sands, who was quickly joined by a number of prominent politicians and international (criminal) lawyers), but this is misleading for several reasons, not least because the IMT was a consequence of the defeat of Nazi Germany and the following regime change, which in the case of Russia is unforeseeable. Continue reading >>
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24 December 2022
A fragmented response to media freedom at risk in the Union
The Polish and Hungarian governments have famously parted ways over responses to the Russo-Ukraine war. However, internally, both continue to rely on similar structural changes in the media environment that help them target voters and undermine elections fairness. The EUβs response to the media freedom and pluralism crisis in Hungary and Poland has been more restrained and also qualitatively different from its answer to the judicial independence crisis or threats to academic freedoms and minority rights. Continue reading >>
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23 December 2022
ΠΠ΅ΡΠΏΠΎΠ΄ΡΠ²Π°Π½Ρ ΡΡΠΊΠ»Π°Π΄Π½Π΅Π½Π½Ρ: Π²ΠΏΠ»ΠΈΠ² ΡΠΎΡΡΠΉΡΡΠΊΠΎΠ³ΠΎ Π²ΡΠΎΡΠ³Π½Π΅Π½Π½Ρ Π² Π£ΠΊΡΠ°ΡΠ½Ρ Π½Π° ΠΊΡΠΈΠ·Ρ Π²Π΅ΡΡ ΠΎΠ²Π΅Π½ΡΡΠ²Π° ΠΏΡΠ°Π²Π° Π² ΠΠ‘
Π―ΠΊΠ±ΠΈ Π½Π°ΠΏΡΠΈΠΊΡΠ½ΡΡ 2021 ΡΠΎΠΊΡ ΠΌΠ΅Π½Π΅ Π·Π°ΠΏΠΈΡΠ°Π»ΠΈ, ΡΠΊΡ ΠΏΠΎΠ΄ΡΡ Π²ΠΈΠ·Π½Π°ΡΠ°ΡΠΈΠΌΡΡΡ ΠΊΡΠΈΠ·Ρ Π²Π΅ΡΡ ΠΎΠ²Π΅Π½ΡΡΠ²Π° ΠΏΡΠ°Π²Π° Π² ΠΠ²ΡΠΎΠΏΠ΅ΠΉΡΡΠΊΠΎΠΌΡ Π‘ΠΎΡΠ·Ρ Ρ 2022 ΡΠΎΡΡ, Ρ Π± Π²ΡΠ΄ΠΏΠΎΠ²ΡΠ², ΡΠΎ Π²ΠΈΠ±ΠΎΡΠΈ Π² Π£Π³ΠΎΡΡΠΈΠ½Ρ ΡΡΠ°Π½ΡΡΡ Π½Π°ΠΉΠ²ΡΠ΄ΠΏΠΎΠ²ΡΠ΄Π°Π»ΡΠ½ΡΡΠΈΠΌ ΠΌΠΎΠΌΠ΅Π½ΡΠΎΠΌ Ρ Π±ΠΎΡΠΎΡΡΠ±Ρ Π·Π° ΡΡΠ½Π½ΠΎΡΡΡ ΠΠ‘. 24 Π»ΡΡΠΎΠ³ΠΎ 2022 ΡΠΎΠΊΡ ΠΠΎΠ»ΠΎΠ΄ΠΈΠΌΠΈΡ ΠΡΡΡΠ½ Π·ΡΠΎΠ±ΠΈΠ² Π·Π°ΡΡΠ°ΡΡΠ»ΠΈΠΌΠΈ ΠΌΠ°ΠΉΠΆΠ΅ Π²ΡΡ ΠΏΡΠΎΠ³Π½ΠΎΠ·ΠΈ ΡΠΎΠ΄ΠΎ ΡΠ²ΡΠΎΠΏΠ΅ΠΉΡΡΠΊΠΎΡ ΠΏΠΎΠ»ΡΡΠΈΠΊΠΈ. ΠΠ΅Π²ΠΈΠΏΡΠ°Π²Π΄Π°Π½Π΅, Π±ΡΡΡΠ°Π»ΡΠ½Π΅ Π²ΡΠΎΡΠ³Π½Π΅Π½Π½Ρ Π ΠΎΡΡΡ Π² Π£ΠΊΡΠ°ΡΠ½Ρ Π½Π΅ Π»ΠΈΡΠ΅ Π·ΡΡΠΉΠ½ΡΠ²Π°Π»ΠΎ ΠΏΠΎΠ½Π°Π΄ 30-ΡΡΡΠ½Ρ ΠΏΠ°ΡΠ°Π΄ΠΈΠ³ΠΌΡ Π±Π΅Π·ΠΏΠ΅ΠΊΠΈ Π½Π° ΠΊΠΎΠ½ΡΠΈΠ½Π΅Π½ΡΡ, Π°Π»Π΅ ΠΉ ΠΌΠ°Π»ΠΎ ΠΌΠ°ΡΡΡΠ°Π±Π½Ρ Π½Π°ΡΠ»ΡΠ΄ΠΊΠΈ Π΄Π»Ρ Π±Π°Π³Π°ΡΡΠΎΡ Π°ΡΠΏΠ΅ΠΊΡΡΠ² ΡΠ²ΡΠΎΠΏΠ΅ΠΉΡΡΠΊΠΎΠ³ΠΎ ΠΆΠΈΡΡΡ, Π²ΠΊΠ»ΡΡΠ°ΡΡΠΈ ΠΊΡΠΈΠ·Ρ Π²Π΅ΡΡ ΠΎΠ²Π΅Π½ΡΡΠ²Π° ΠΏΡΠ°Π²Π° Ρ Π΄Π²ΠΎΡ Π΄Π΅ΡΠΆΠ°Π²Π°Ρ -ΡΠ»Π΅Π½Π°Ρ ΠΠ‘: Π£Π³ΠΎΡΡΠΈΠ½Ρ ΡΠ° ΠΠΎΠ»ΡΡΡ. Continue reading >>
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23 December 2022
Unexpected Complications: The impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on the rule of law crisis in the EU
If somebody had asked me in late 2021 what events would define the rule of law crisis in the European Union in 2022, I would have said that the elections in Hungary would be the most crucial moment for the struggle for EU values. On 24 February 2022, Vladimir Putin made almost all predictions concerning European politics obsolete. Russiaβs unjustified, brutal invasion of Ukraine not only obliterated an over 30-year-old paradigm of security on the continent but also had massive ripple effects on many aspects of European life, including the rule of law crisis in two EU Member States: Hungary and Poland. Continue reading >>
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23 December 2022
Π ΠΈΠ·ΠΈΠΊ ΡΡΠ½Π΅Π»ΡΠ½ΠΎΠ³ΠΎ Π±Π°ΡΠ΅Π½Π½Ρ Ρ Π±ΠΎΡΠΎΡΡΠ±Ρ Π· ΡΠΎΡΡΠΉΡΡΠΊΠΎΡ Π΄Π΅Π·ΡΠ½ΡΠΎΡΠΌΠ°ΡΡΡΡ
ΠΡΠΎΡΠΈΡΡΠ°Π²Π»Π΅Π½Π½Ρ ΠΊΡΠ½Π΅ΡΠΈΡΠ½ΠΎΡ Π²ΡΠΉΠ½ΠΈ, ΡΠΊΠ° ΡΠΎΠ·ΠΏΠΎΡΠ°Π»Π°ΡΡ ΠΏΡΡΠ»Ρ ΠΏΠΎΠ²Π½ΠΎΠΌΠ°ΡΡΡΠ°Π±Π½ΠΎΠ³ΠΎ Π²ΡΠΎΡΠ³Π½Π΅Π½Π½Ρ Π ΠΎΡΡΡ Π² Π£ΠΊΡΠ°ΡΠ½Ρ 24 Π»ΡΡΠΎΠ³ΠΎ 2022 ΡΠΎΠΊΡ, ΡΠ° Π·ΡΡΠΊΠ½Π΅Π½Ρ Ρ ΡΠΈΡΡΠΎΠ²ΠΎΠΌΡ ΠΏΡΠΎΡΡΠΎΡΡ ΠΏΠΎΠΊΠ°Π·ΡΡ, ΡΠΎ ΠΎΠ±ΠΈΠ΄Π²Ρ Π°ΡΠ΅Π½ΠΈ Π²ΡΠΉΠ½ΠΈ ΠΌΠ°Π»ΠΈ ΡΡΠ·Π½Ρ Π½Π°ΡΠ»ΡΠ΄ΠΊΠΈ Π΄Π»Ρ ΠΊΡΠ°ΡΠ½-ΡΠ»Π΅Π½ΡΠ² ΠΠΠ’Π ΡΠ° ΠΠ‘. Π―ΠΊΡΠΎ Π·Π°Ρ ΡΠ΄Π½Ρ Π΄Π΅ΡΠΆΠ°Π²ΠΈ Π·ΠΌΠΎΠ³Π»ΠΈ Π·Π½Π°ΡΠ½ΠΎΡ ΠΌΡΡΠΎΡ ΡΡΡΠΈΠΌΠ°ΡΠΈΡΡ Π²ΡΠ΄ ΡΡΠ·ΠΈΡΠ½ΠΈΡ Π±ΠΎΠΉΠΎΠ²ΠΈΡ Π΄ΡΠΉ, ΠΎΠ±ΠΌΠ΅ΠΆΠΈΠ²ΡΠΈ ΡΠ²ΠΎΡ ΡΡΠ°ΡΡΡ Π½Π°Π΄Π°Π½Π½ΡΠΌ Π·Π±ΡΠΎΡ ΡΠ° Π²ΡΠΉΡΡΠΊΠΎΠ²ΠΈΡ ΠΌΠ°ΡΠ΅ΡΡΠ°Π»ΡΠ² ΡΠΊΡΠ°ΡΠ½ΡΡΠΊΠΈΠΌ ΡΠΈΠ»Π°ΠΌ, ΡΠΎ Π² ΡΠΈΡΡΠΎΠ²ΡΠΉ ΡΡΠ΅ΡΡ ΡΠ°ΠΊΠ΅ ΡΡΡΠΈΠΌΠ°Π½Π½Ρ Π²ΠΈΡΠ²ΠΈΠ»ΠΎΡΡ Π½Π΅ΠΌΠΎΠΆΠ»ΠΈΠ²ΠΈΠΌ. Continue reading >>
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