Today’s Russia is not merely violating international law — it is openly dismantling its very architecture. Nearly 10,000 individuals have brought cases against the Kremlin and Europe’s top human rights court recently ruled that Russia violated international law in Ukraine.

These rulings have the power to be more than symbolic. Yes, the Kremlin has withdrawn from many international legal institutions and is blatantly ignoring the treaties to which it still belongs. But there is still a lever that can be pulled to impose real consequences for Moscow.

There is evidence that Russia fully understands that it cannot completely ignore international legal norms without consequences. That is why the Kremlin officially demands the cancellation of reparations and war-related payments for Ukraine, as well as the lifting of all sanctions imposed on the country in connection with its war against Ukraine.

But still, Moscow continues its legal nihilism. This poses the challenge of how the international community should respond to a nuclear power that rejects any legal obligation that does not serve its interests. This question extends far beyond Ukraine or internal repression. It threatens the very foundations of the international order — a system based on obligations, accountability and universally accepted human rights principles.

The strategic goal of holding Russia to account should be eventual regime change and the democratization of the country.

Coercion works slowly. The tactical goal today must be the implementation of gradual measures that, even against the will of the current........

© The Moscow Times