United Nations

Highlights:

Anglo-French troops land at Port Fouad, near Port Said on November 05, 1956 during the Suez Crisis. An Anglo-French intervention has been launched after Egypt's President Nasser nationalized Suez Canal on July 26, 1956. End of December diplomatic action by the USA and the USSR forced Britain and France to withdraw and Israel to relinquish Sinaï which they invaded in October. (Photo by Guy Touchard / AFP) (Photo by GUY TOUCHARD/AFP via Getty Images)

Crisis as Catalyst: The Past, Present, and Future of International Law

To see crisis as catalyst is to reject fatalism and to believe that law can be both a shield and a compass in turbulent times. #ILW2025 aims to honor that belief.
A collage of images featuring scenes from the Russia - Ukraine War.

Just Security’s Russia–Ukraine War Archive

A catalog of over 100 articles (many with Ukrainian translations) on the Russia Ukraine War -- law, diplomacy, policy options, and more.
International Law Weekend 2025 Logo (via ABILA)

Crisis as Catalyst in International Law

On its 80th anniversary, the U.N. is undertaking much-needed reform. Despite pressures, it continues to be one of the world’s most important and impactful institutions. 
Brazilian indigenous people and others take part in a demonstration called by Stop Ecocide International (SEI) for the recognition of ecocide as an international crime, on October 20, 2022 outside the European Council in Brussels where EU leaders were gathered for a summit. (Photo by KENZO TRIBOUILLARD/AFP via Getty Images)

Attacks on Nature, Atrocities Against People: The Case for Environmental Harm as a 12th Crime Against Humanity

Addressing the global environmental crisis requires urgent action, and this new treaty offers States an unprecedented opportunity to confront it directly and decisively.
In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia's President Vladimir Putin chairs a Security Council meeting via a videoconference at the Kremlin in Moscow on July 25, 2025. (Photo by SERGEI ILYIN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Russian Motivations Behind the “Hanoi Convention” Against Cybercrime

Russia’s cybercrime stance reflects a broader push to assert state control over the internet, restrict dissent, and build global backing for its governance model.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)

Trump Signals Instrumental Approach to U.N. – But it Could Be Worse

Trump's General Assembly speech could have been worse, but it also showed that if countries want to make the U.N. system work, they can't bank on U.S. leadership.
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First Deputy Permanent Representative of Russia to the UN Dmitry Polyansky (R) speaks at a Security Council meeting on Ukraine at the United Nations in New York on September 23, 2025. (Photo by Kena Betancur / AFP) (Photo by KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images)

The United Nations in Hindsight: The Increasing Use of Article 51 of the UN Charter and the Security Council

Reports required under Article 51 are crucial for the UNSC to assess disputed self-defense claims and ensure accountability and maintain peace.

Xi’s Climate Announcement: A Disappointment, Not a Breakthrough

China’s climate announcement — coupled with the U.S. withdrawal — has alarmed many in terms of the viability of the Paris Agreement’s temperature goal. 
IMAGES (left to right): People search through buildings, destroyed during Israeli air raids in the southern Gaza Strip on November 7, 2023 in Khan Yunis, Gaza (Photo by Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images); A fireball erupts during Israeli bombardment of Gaza City on October 9, 2023 (Photo by Mahmud Hams/AFP via Getty Images); The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the UN, holds public hearings on the request for the indication of provisional measures submitted by South Africa in the case South Africa v. Israel on 11 and 12 January 2024, at the Peace Palace in The Hague, the seat of the Court (Photo by the International Court of Justice).

Just Security’s Israel-Hamas War Archive

Just Security's collection of more than 110 articles covering the Israel-Hamas War and its diplomatic, legal, and humanitarian consequences.
Marshall Islands president Hilda Heine speaks during the General Debate of the United Nations General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York City on September 24, 2025. (Photo by Leonardo MUNOZ / AFP) (Photo by LEONARDO MUNOZ/AFP via Getty Images)

A Human Rights Approach to Nuclear Regimes: Lessons from the Legacy of Nuclear Testing in the Marshall Islands

Acknowledgement and respect for human rights can encourage States, like the Marshall Islands, to join and actively participate in nuclear regimes.
A general view shows a screen of votes during a United Nations General Assembly meeting to vote on a non-binding resolution demanding "an immediate humanitarian ceasefire" in Gaza at UN headquarters in New York on December 12, 2023. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

From Peacekeepers to Naval Convoys: Weighing the Options (and Legal Limits) on More Concerted General Assembly Action on Gaza

With no end in sight for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, could the UN General Assembly provide the muscle to support humanitarian or peacekeeping intervention?
People walk past the United Nations (UN) headquarters in Manhattan

Washington’s Multilateral Retreat Creates an Opening for State and Local Leaders

U.S. state and local leaders can fill voids left as the Trump administration cuts and even exits multilateral organizations.
A man walks through the rubble of buildings destroyed in Israeli airstrikes at the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on January 12, 2025, as the war between Israel and Hamas militants continues. (Photo by EYAD BABA/AFP via Getty Images)

U.N. Commission Finds That Israel Is Committing Genocide in Gaza: What Does It Mean?

Context for those seeking to understand what it does (and does not) mean for the UN Commission to make a genocide determination.
Flags fly outside the General Secretariat Building at the United Nations Headquarters.

At the Coming U.N. Leaders Meetings: Existential Questions on the U.S. Role, Israel-Palestine, and the U.N. Itself

This year's General Assembly meeting may do more to spotlight the U.N.’s current weaknesses than help find solutions to them.
In this aerial view, a forklift puts boxes of peaches on to a truck after they were harvested from the last crop off of the trees at a peach orchard on July 24, 2023 in Fort Valley, Georgia. Due to weather extremes earlier in the year, their peach season, which usually ends in August, concluded early. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

America’s Climate Diplomacy Challenge and the Path to Rebuilding Credibility

For international climate diplomacy to succeed, it cannot be tethered to partisan swings in Washington.
(L-R) French President Emmanuel Macron, Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer pose for the media at a hotel prior to an E3 meeting on the sidelines of the 2025 NATO summit on June 24, 2025 in The Hague, Netherlands. (Photo by Ben Stansall - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

What You Need to Know About Iran Sanctions Snap Back at the UN: A Q&A with Kelsey Davenport

On Aug. 28, three European nations triggered snapback of the UN's Iran sanctions. Kelsey Davenport explains its impact, next steps, and why it matters.
Security Council Chamber at United Nations

The United Nations in Hindsight: The Security Council and the UN80 Initiative – What Lies Ahead?

The road to a leaner, more efficient U.N. is likely to be bumpy, but as the U.N. turns 80, its future may lie in being able to adapt to shifting global realities.
IMAGES (left to right): Natural disaster and its consequences (via Getty Images); In this picture taken on September 28, 2022, an internally displaced flood-affected family sits outside their tent at a makeshift tent camp in Jamshoro district of Sindh province (Photo by Rizwan Tabassum/AFP via Getty Images; Trees smolder and burn during the Dixie fire near Greenville, California on August 3, 2021. – Numerous fires are raging through the state’s northern forests, as climate change makes wildfire season longer, hotter and more devastating. (Photo by JOSH EDELSON/AFP via Getty Images)

Just Security’s Climate Archive

A catalog of articles analyzing the diplomatic, political, legal, security, and humanitarian consequences of the international climate crisis.
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