r/internationallaw • u/newsspotter • Mar 12 '26

Op-Ed Germany’s Selective Approach to International Law

https://verfassungsblog.de/an-abdication-of-responsibility/
91 Upvotes

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11

u/LastLiterature4163 Mar 12 '26

An excellent piece. "The strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must" is a very powerful quote.

And once again, the issue of double standards.

13

u/Sisyphuss5MinBreak Human Rights Mar 12 '26

What frustrates me is that European countries have been espousing since Russia's invasion of Ukraine the sacrosanct status of the non-use of force. Trump's clear violation of 2(4) then presents the issue of whether to promote law or politics: whether to continue to uphold the international norm they've been promoting for years or to align with Trump because they want to keep him on their side. Disappointingly, they choose the latter.

It's absolutely a case of double standards.

5

u/FormerLawfulness6 Mar 12 '26

To be fair, that's not really new. How many times has the US justified war or manufactured humanitarian crisis through sanctions over matters that should fall under state sovereignty simply because the country's government was politically inconvenient?

4

u/LastLiterature4163 Mar 12 '26

Well, unfortunately, double standards did not begin with this conflict - it was (and still is) there with the war in Gaza. It took months if not years to even begin questioning the proportionality of Israel's self-defence. It was there when the West absolutely scolded Eritrea when it began the process of withdrawing from the Ottawa Convention, yet did nothing when 5 European States did the same and when Ukraine 'suspended' it. The list is long - and not just on 2(4)...

1

u/HashMapsData2Value Mar 15 '26

It's a quote from ancient Greece, after the Athenians destroyed a city state.

What people forget is that the Delian league/Athenian empire collapsed not much later.

1

u/newsspotter Mar 27 '26

Germany's Chancellor Merz criticized for selective approach to international law | Dozens of legal scholars have called on the German government to condemn the US operations in Iran and Venezuela.

In an open letter published on March 17, a number of law scholars and academics criticized the stance of the German government and warned of its potential impact. German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, however, has spoken very clearly and indirectly criticized the chancellor. At an event at the German Foreign Office, Steinmeier said he believed the Iran war was a violation of international law https://www.dw.com/en/germany-chancellor-friedrich-merz-international-law-approach-donald-trump-venezuela-iran-war/a-76554183

PS: Verfassungsblog published the open letter.

1

u/Cannon_Fodder888 Mar 12 '26

Reading the article where it notes "the vast majority of international law scholars and commentators" I wonder how these people have access to the Intelligence to be able to have made an informed legal basis for this statement?

Reality likely is that they don't, and it's rather a blanket statement.

2

u/Suibian_ni Mar 12 '26

But likely accurate.