Russia-Ukraine Conflict Undermines Principles of National Sovereignty

The Russia-Ukraine conflict feels like it is taking place pre-1648, the year the Peace of Westphalia was signed.

The Peace of Westphalia was signed in Osnabrück and Munster, both cities located in the northwestern region of Germany called Westphalia. This historic treaty established the sovereign nation-state system in the aftermath of the Thirty Years War. Supporting this system is one of the most critical things we can do to prevent future wars, according to Clare Lopez, national security expert and Founder/President of Lopez Liberty LLC.

"I don’t think we understand sufficiently the role of the nation-state with fixed territorial boundaries plays in preventing a world of chaos," she said.

Before 1648, chronic warfare and territorial disputes were the norm. Warlords and thugs rampaged across the lands, taking whatever they could. It was a system of ‘might makes right.’

At worst, large nomadic groups conducted massive invasions and conquests, leading to instability and the collapse of established civilizations. Living standards were low and international trade was only a trickle. Security was rare. 

This changed when the Peace of Westphalia created the system of nation-states that’s still with us today. The devastation of the Thirty Years War encouraged European rulers to join together for the first time to support the idea of the sovereign nation state as the foundational unit of a world system.

"The nation-state with defensible borders for everyone is the best system we’ve yet discovered,” Lopez said. “The system hasn’t worked perfectly and too often is honored in the breach. Even so, it plays an incalculably large role in preventing warlords and thugs from constantly seizing territory from the weaker countries.”

The essence of the nation-state system is that it helps prevent disputes over land and resources by specifying which areas belong to which countries. Today, the United Nations works to preserve peace by respecting the principle that an established, internationally recognized country’s borders must not be invaded by its neighbors.

Russia’s recent activity is a stark example of what the UN aims to prevent. Russia's invasion of Ukraine violates the principle of national sovereignty.

Lopez sees other problems with Russia. For one thing, Russia isn’t a single nation per se, but a colonial empire comprising numerous nations of conquered peoples, all dominated by an authoritarian government. Its leaders do not govern by the consent of the governed but maintain control through coercion, fear, and repression of dissent. Political opponents like Alexei Navalny are jailed or killed, demonstrating the lack of political freedom and democracy within the country.

Lopez argues that Russia’s actions have broader implications for neighboring countries. "If Ukraine falls to Russia, Putin will not stop," she warned. "He's already in Moldova, doing the same as he’s done in Ukraine.”

Putin is already working to take a slice of Moldova called Transdnistria, she said. The Russian playbook is to claim that ethnic Russians are being persecuted, and Russian forces (sometimes called “little green men” for their non-Russian uniforms) then go in and foment dissension.

Countries like Poland, Hungary, and the Baltic states understand their vulnerability to these tactics. With the looming knowledge that they could be next, they strongly support Ukraine.

It can be challenging for Americans to understand a governing system so different from their own, and natural to assume that the former twin superpower of Russia has political system somewhat similar to that of the United States. With our tendency to “mirror image” our own values when looking at Russia, we don’t easily see that Russia is a neo-empirical expansionist power bent on adding to its territory by conquering its neighbors.

Russia should pay reparations for the destruction it’s caused and for seizing territory, ports, factories and natural resources from Ukraine, Lopez said.

Further, those responsible for war crimes should face justice in the International Criminal Court at the Hague.

Her position may seem harsh, but in her view, if Russia pays no price for violating international law, then it’s a green light for the next expansionist leader to seize the territory and assets that it wants. She wants the international community to come together and make sure that the example of the reparations Russia is forced to pay to Ukraine and the punishment for war crimes deter future thugs.

Defending Ukraine is bigger than just about supporting one country. It’s about upholding a system that prevents global chaos and that can prevent greater suffering in future wars.