- Russia's invasion of Ukraine is shaking the global system built after World War II.
- This system has appeared dysfunctional and powerless in the face of Russian aggression.
- One ex-diplomat said the fate of this system depends on how the world responds to Russia's unprovoked invasion.
Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine is a shock test of the international system that was founded in the wake of World War II in the hope of preventing another global conflict. It also shines an uncomfortable light on gaps in the system, given it failed to prevent this war.
In a surreal set of circumstances on Wednesday night, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced his country was launching a military operation against Ukraine as the Russian ambassador to the UN, Vasily Nabenzya, simultaneously presided over an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council (UNSC). Nabenzya is the panel's rotating president this month.
The fact that Russia was overseeing an emergency meeting over a crisis it provoked seemed to highlight profound dysfunction in the framework of global institutions like the UN. As one of the victors of World War II, Russia is one of five permanent members on the UNSC and therefore has veto power. Russia on Friday vetoed a resolution to condemn it over the invasion of Ukraine.
The UN was founded in 1945 to help prevent war and foster dialogue between nations. But it has often been powerless to thwart conflicts, especially when they're launched by major powers. The US was rebuked by the UN over its 2003 invasion of Iraq, but in reality there was little the global body could do to stop it.
"The invasion of Ukraine is *another* example of how powerful nations ignore international law and do as they please when it comes to weaker nations. The international system is broken—it has long been broken—and Russia's actions are but a symptom of this failed system," Pouya Alimagham, an MIT historian, wrote in a tweet on Friday.
—Charles Lister (@Charles_Lister) February 25, 2022
The stability of the world is in many ways dependent on whether countries are willing to abide by an agreed set of rules, with respect for the sovereignty and borders of other nations at the top of the list. Russia effectively set that list on fire with its invasion of Ukraine, the second largest country in Europe.
"Putin wants the world to travel back in time to a time before the United Nations — to a time when empires ruled the world...Colleagues, President Putin is testing our international system," Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the UN, said on Monday.
Steven Pifer, a former US ambassador to Ukraine, told Insider that the fate of this system "will depend on how the rest of the world responds to Russia's aggression."
"Russia's unprovoked and unjustified attack on Ukraine certainly shows that the Kremlin has little respect for international norms, such as those in the UN Charter, Helsinki Final Act, or Charter of Paris. Russia is violating numerous commitments it has made to respect Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity and not to use force against Ukraine," Pifer said.
Russia is facing global condemnation over its war in Ukraine, and the US and its allies are moving to isolate it both diplomatically and economically.
John Herbst, another former US ambassador to Ukraine, in an interview with SiriusXM Business Radio said that this crisis marks an "absolutely critical moment" for the international community and global institutions like the UN.
The US and its allies created an "extraordinary system at the end of World War II, it included the UN, it included NATO, it included all the financial institutions like the IMF and the World Bank, and it was based upon rules," Herbst said. The rules were "supposed to be the same for everybody," Herbst said, and they called for differences between countries to be resolved "either by negotiations or by international law, not by aggression."
"And as a result of these institutions in this order, there has not been a war between two large powers since 1945. Such major wars like World War II are the great destroyers of people and wealth. So the world today is wealthy in a way that never has been. And despite all the chaos, it is far more peaceful today than it has ever been historically, because there's not been major power war," Herbst added. "Putin is threatening that...So we have a vital stake in stopping Putin in Ukraine."
Herbst said the US should be sending major weapons systems to Ukraine, including "more potent anti-aircraft missiles," adding that the sanctions Biden imposed on Russia in response to the military assault were "excellent." Biden has slapped sanctions on major Russian banks as well as Russian elites. The White House on Friday also announced that Putin and his top diplomat, Sergey Lavrov, will be sanctioned.
