Introduction

Abstract

Any book about the concept of sovereignty and its relation to principles of responsibility and humanitarian intervention is bound to run headlong into real-life crisis situations. At the time of writing, there are multiple such crises taking place across the world, foremost among them being the ongoing domestic and potentially international conflict in Ukraine. There, the months of protest that led to the toppling of President Viktor Yushenko only spurred a new and more dangerous crisis as the Crimean peninsula, backed by Russia, unilaterally seceded from Ukraine following a hastily arranged referendum. In the domestic and international crises that have developed from this, the concepts of sovereignty, self-determination, responsibility and legitimacy have been invoked on all sides of the debate. The case of Kosovo, which had appeared to be receding into historical insignificance, again returned to the centre of international political debate, as Russia sought to accuse its American and European counterparts of double standards. Amidst the claims and counter-claims, the annexation (or independence, depending on one’s perspective) of Crimea appears to have become a new fact of international politics, despite the claims of illegality levelled against it. At this point, it is by no means clear what changes, if any, will occur in the Ukrainian — or perhaps even global — political landscape in order to alleviate this crisis.