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Ukraine War and the Perils of ‘Self-determination’
The right of “self-determination of the people” is a double-edged sword. It has been used by postcolonial nations to reclaim their territories and economy. The idea has also been exploited by the powerful countries to divide the world on ethnic and religious lines to advance their hegemony through humanitarian interventions.
Russia is the aggressor as per the international relations rule book—the destroyer of international stability and the post-1945 international order that proscribes war (Inglis 2022).
It has been argued that the Russian President Vladimir Putin’s use of military force against Ukraine is a direct assault on the principles of self-determination of all peoples (Sands 2022). His intention to deny Ukraine the right to choose its military partner violates the principles of sovereignty. Putin has attacked sovereignty and self-determination, the twin pillars of post-war liberal international order.
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