Defender’s Paradox and the War in Ukraine: A Legal Dilemma

The ongoing armed conflict in Ukraine has highlighted a textbook
breach of international legal norms prohibiting the use of force and protecting the territorial integrity of states. Its classical character (i.e. a clear aggressor and defender engaged in prolonged, large-scale warfare) exposes a tension between ad bellum and in bello norms. Under certain circumstances, this tension creates a paradoxical situation in which the defending state may be unable to fulfil one set of obligations without impairing the other. The study conceptualizes this situation as the "defender’s paradox" and examines the conflict of norms at its core, including the role of international human rights law and the differing temporal application of ad bellum and in bello obligations. Using the war in Ukraine as its principal illustration, the study argues that this conflict constitutes an irresolvable legal dilemma and examines its implications for post-conflict justice. It further explores the underlying moral question raised by the paradox, contributing to a broader understanding of ad bellum or in bello norms and their interaction in large-scale international armed conflicts.

About the speaker

Dr. Kamal Makili-Aliyev is an Associate Professor of International Law at the School of Global Studies (University of Gothenburg) and an Affiliated Scholar at the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law. He is a human rights generalist with primary research interests in international law and international relations, specializing in international security and conflict resolution. 

Dr. Makili-Aliyev has previously held positions as a Senior Lecturer at Malmö University, a Postdoctoral Researcher at Lund University, and Vice-Rector of the Lomonosov Moscow State University Baku Branch. He is also a Fellow of the National Security Institute in Amherst, MA, USA.