International Law: Relevance, Challenges and the Future of Global Order

Subject: GS 2: International Relations

Context: Amid conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, instability in West Asia and growing criticism of international institutions, questions have emerged over the relevance of international law. 

About International Law

• International law is a set of rules, principles and norms governing relations among states and other international actors, based on treaties, customary practices and international agreements. 
• Underlying Principle: It seeks to replace purely power-based relations with a rules-based order, where states are expected to conduct their relations through agreed legal principles.

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Why Does International Law Remain Relevant?

• States Continue to Invoke It: Even during conflicts, states justify their actions through the United Nations Charter, sovereignty, territorial integrity, self-defence and international humanitarian law, showing that states still recognise international law as a source of legitimacy.
• Provides Accountability: International law establishes standards for assessing state conduct, with institutions such as the International Court of Justice and International Criminal Court providing forums for accountability.
• Facilitates International Cooperation: It enables cooperation in aviation, maritime trade, diplomacy, communications and international commerce. 
  • The Chicago Convention, 1944 provides the legal framework for international civil aviation, while the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea regulates maritime activities.
• Protects Individuals: International legal frameworks facilitate consular assistance, passport recognition, refugee protection, international travel and cross-border movement.
• Supports Peace and Conflict Resolution: Treaties, ceasefires, peace agreements and negotiated settlements create legal obligations even between adversarial states. 
  • The Indus Waters Treaty, 1960 has historically provided a framework for managing India-Pakistan water relations despite political tensions.
• Strengthens Rules-Based Dispute Settlement: International legal mechanisms enable states to resolve disputes through law rather than unilateral power. 
  • India’s acceptance of the 2014 International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea award on the India-Bangladesh maritime boundary demonstrates commitment to rules-based dispute settlement.

Why Does Compliance Occur Despite Weak Enforcement?

• Compliance Paradox: International law lacks a centralised global government, yet states comply with a substantial body of international obligations on a routine basis.
  • Louis Henkin captured this reality: “Almost all nations observe almost all principles of international law and almost all of their obligations almost all of the time.”
• Managerial Model of Compliance: Scholars Abram Chayes and Antonia Handler Chayes argue that compliance often results from the managerial dynamics of treaty regimes, rather than coercive sanctions alone.
  • States consider the reputational, diplomatic and economic costs of persistent non-compliance. Becoming an international pariah can undermine investment, cooperation, diplomatic credibility and access to international institutions.
• Compliance Often Goes Unnoticed: The effectiveness of international law cannot be measured only through violations because routine compliance attracts little public attention, whereas violations generate headlines.
  • Thousands of international flights, commercial shipments and diplomatic transactions occur daily under established legal frameworks without disputes becoming international crises.
• Legal Justification Matters: States continue to invoke, interpret and defend their actions through international law, indicating its continuing normative and political influence.

Why is International Law Important for India and the Global South?

• Upholds Sovereign Equality: International law formally rests on the principle of sovereign equality of states, giving smaller and developing countries a legal basis to assert their interests.
  • For non-hegemonic states, international law provides an alternative to raw economic, military or geopolitical coercion.
• Addresses Transnational Challenges: Problems such as climate change, pandemics, cyber-attacks, terrorism and economic instability cannot be effectively addressed by individual states alone.
• Strengthens Multilateralism: International law enables developing countries to participate in multilateral negotiations, treaty-making and collective decision-making.
• Protects Developing-Country Interests: A functioning rules-based order allows countries such as India to pursue their interests through negotiation, legal commitments and institutional mechanisms, rather than relying solely on material power.

Major Challenges in International Law

• Weak Enforcement: International law lacks a centralised enforcement authority comparable to a domestic government, making implementation significantly dependent on state consent and cooperation.
• Power Asymmetry: The international legal order has been criticised for reflecting historical inequalities and unequal distributions of power.
• United Nations Security Council Constraints: Conflicts such as Ukraine and Gaza have exposed limitations arising from the veto structure and geopolitical divisions within the United Nations Security Council.
• Gap Between Law and Practice: Persistent wars, civilian suffering and violations of international humanitarian law reveal the gap between legal obligations and state behaviour.

Way Forward

• Reform Global Institutions: International institutions, particularly the United Nations Security Council, require greater representativeness, legitimacy and effectiveness.
• Strengthen Compliance Mechanisms: Improve monitoring, accountability, dispute settlement and implementation mechanisms while respecting state sovereignty.
• Reduce Enforcement Gaps: Strengthen international institutions so that violations entail greater reputational, diplomatic and economic consequences.
• Promote Multilateralism: Global challenges require greater reliance on negotiation, treaty-based cooperation and multilateral solutions rather than unilateral action.
• Ensure Sovereign Equality:  Reforms should address historical power asymmetries and provide developing countries with a greater voice in global governance.
• Adapt International Law: International law must evolve to address emerging challenges such as cyber warfare, artificial intelligence, climate change, pandemics and autonomous weapons.

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Conclusion

International law is under pressure, not obsolete. Its widespread compliance sustains global cooperation despite visible violations. The way forward is institutional reform, stronger compliance and a more equitable rules-based order. 

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