Russian Foreign Policy and the International Law in the 1990s versus 2000s: Using, Misusing, or Creating a New Norm?

Throughout the 1990s, both Russian domestic policies, as well as foreign policies, went through an upheaval. When Russia declared itself a legal and political successor to all USSR’s obligations, the global configuration of powers had already shifted, so it had to reconfigure. This paper provides an overview of the dynamics of how Russia took its position in relating to its usage of references to international law/international standards and arguments of international law in terms of its foreign policymaking. In particular, this paper addresses the issue of how internal political fluctuations in Russia during the 1990s and 2000s affected its foreign ventures. Specifically, this paper looks into how, when, and if international laws established in the post-1990 period were used or abused in terms of forwarding Russia’s own foreign policy activities and whether this maneuvering triggered any changes to the global political game in any respect.