CRISIS OF THE CONTEMPORARY INTERNATIONAL LEGAL SYSTEM: INSTITUTIONAL ASPECTS AND THE NECESSITY FOR REFORMS

Abstract

This research article presents a comprehensive study of the systemic degradation of the international legal order amidst the transition to a polycentric global model. The author conducts a profound analysis of the ontological crisis of international law, framing it not as a mere technical failure but as a fundamental contradiction between the classical norms of the UN Charter and contemporary practices of interstate interaction.

The study highlights the normative antinomy between the principles of territorial integrity and the right of peoples to self-determination, alongside the erosion of the prohibition on the use of force caused by the expansive interpretation of self-defense and humanitarian intervention doctrines. Particular attention is given to the intense scholarly polemics, including the critique of liberal legalism, the "rules-based order" concept, and the perspectives of the legal realism school.

The article argues that the institutional inefficiency of the UN Security Council and the paralysis of enforcement mechanisms result in the system's inability to achieve declared social and environmental progress goals. To overcome this crisis, the author proposes conceptual reforms, including the democratization of decision-making processes, the enhancement of regional organizations' roles, and the formalization of a hierarchy of core legal principles. The conclusion emphasizes the existential significance of preemptive global security architecture reform as an alternative to a global military conflict, which has historically served as a catalyst for institutional transformation.