In Search of the Lost Consensus

Abstract

The article provides a critical look at the article “What Use for Sovereignty Today?” by Martti Koskenniemi. The author presents his view of the development of the institution of sovereignty and the system of international law in the second decade of the 21^st century. The article points out that nowadays we are witnessing the strengthening of sovereignty and the growing mistrust in some international treaties and international organizations. The reason behind this trend is seen in the lack of consensus among the major subjects of international law on the key issues of international cooperation, as well as in the discrediting (in the eyes of the international community) military operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and the bringing of cholera to Haiti by the UN peacekeepers. At the same time, the author postulates positive development in the international environmental cooperation.