The Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine: Implications for the Prosecution of Religious Leaders

Michelle Coleman is a senior lecturer in law at Swansea University.

There is no doubt that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022 was an act of aggression by the Russian State. In international law aggression is generally understood as when a country either starts a war against another country or engages in actions that drive another country to go to war. It is grounded in the idea that attacking another country goes against the peace and security and victim states’ own sovereignty and right to self-determination.

(more…)

Continue Reading The Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine: Implications for the Prosecution of Religious Leaders

Webinar: Ukraine’s Law Banning the Russian Orthodox Church and Affiliated Organizations: Politics, Law, and Theology

The webinar was hosted by the ICLRS Blog “Talk About: Law and Religion” and Orthodox Christianity Studies Center—Fordham University on October 29, 2024. Webinar panelists discussed political, legal, social, and theological aspects of Ukraine’s recent law No 3894 banning the Russian Orthodox Church and religious organizations affiliated with the ROC.

(more…)

Continue Reading Webinar: Ukraine’s Law Banning the Russian Orthodox Church and Affiliated Organizations: Politics, Law, and Theology

International and National Responses to the Russian Orthodox Church’s Support of Putin’s War in Ukraine

Dmytro Vovk is a visiting associate professor at Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. The following post is based on his remarks at the ICLRS 31st Annual International Law and Religion Symposium, 8 October 2024.

In July 2021, Russian president Vladimir Putin published an article “On the Historical Unity of Russians and Ukrainians.” The article, which many now consider to be a prologue to or a sign of preparation for the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, contains the following passage:

(more…)

Continue Reading International and National Responses to the Russian Orthodox Church’s Support of Putin’s War in Ukraine